The Angst of Konoha High
by Yzz
Summary: The character's of Naruto are brought into the modern world in a Japanese High School. Throughout there 3 years, they will encounter all there is in a High School experience. Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I own my OCs!
1. It's An Adventure, Right?

**Well, I decided to try out what everyone else seems to be doing: A Naruto High School FanFic xD I've put a lot into it, and I already have a lot written so far. Please tell me what you think of it! If you have any questions about the story, ask! Some of it may be a little confusing. I tried to use some Japanese culture to influence the story. Also, I have created a few OCs, but don't worry, they're described in the story  
-Yzz **

With one last movement, Kari Akasuna's auburn hair was now straight. She set down her hair flat iron and looked at her reflection in her bathroom mirror. Her green eyes gazing back at her, decorated with just enough black eyeliner and mascara. Her naturally pink-colored lips shimmered with the help of clear lip gloss and her small, gold hoop earrings dangled down from her ears. Kari winked at herself and smiled at her appearance.

"Kari, dear, are you ready yet?" Kari's mother called at her from the kitchen.

"One second, Mom!" she called back. Kari looked down at her body to make sure everything looked good. Her navy colored straight-legged jeans showed off her beyond perfect legs. Her torso was covered by a comfortable sized black blink-182 band tee. She nodded in approval at herself and rushed out of the bathroom and across the hall. Kari grabbed her black messenger bag and threw on her black flats that were highlighted by a cute, dark blue bow.

"Kari, hurry up! You don't want to be late on your first day, do you? I'll be in the car," Kari's mother called again.

"I'm coming, mom!" Kari answered and walked out of her room. "Ja ne, Bakae-chan!" Kari bent down and gave her black and white cat a pat as she meowed back up at her. She walked out of her family's apartment, shutting the door behind her. She ran down 2 flights of stairs and saw her mom waiting in the car.

"You ready?" Kari's mom asked. Kari looked up at her mom, "Yeah, let's go!"

When they arrived at the high school, Kari stepped out of her mother's car and with one quick wave to her, Kari set off for the front doors.

She had been going to school in Japan for 2 years, since she was 13, in 8th grade. She first moved to Japan from the United States when her American father and Japanese mother got divorced. Kari moved to Japan with her mother into their grandmother's house, who her half-brother, Sasori, was living with, too. Sasori decided to stay in Japan with his grandmother after his father died and his mother got an offer from her company for relocation to America. Kari also had a sister in America, who was currently going to college in New York at the Art Institute of New York City.

Now today was her first year in Konoha High School, a freshman. As she walked down the main hallway of the high school, Kari's eyes wandered, examining the different rooms and people. She looked over to the main office and noticed a few new students getting their schedules, along with some old ones trying to play around with the secretaries.

Kari giggled as she saw one of the boys, probably a junior, being scowled by an old secretary with short grey hair. "Inoue Seiji! I saw your face all last year, I know you, and you're not new!"

"I'm not Seiji, I'm Kosuji!" the boy whined.

"I'm Seiji! Looks like you don't know me after all," an identical boy mock-cried as he stood up next to his twin brother.

Kari's attention was soon distracted by a familiar voice calling her name.

"KARI-CHAAAN!" Kari's long-time best friend, Lizzi Kozuki called her name. Lizzi was also half-American, half-Japanese, but she had been living with her parents in Japan for her whole life. She turned around to see her black haired friend running towards her. Her dark hair was pulled back into a high pony tail. She was wearing jean shorts and a black beater, along with a pair of blue Vans. Lizzi was accompanied by the oh-so familiar hot-headed blond boy, Naruto Uzumaki, who was skating down the hallway next to her on his skateboard. He had on faded blue shorts and a Billabong tee. Naruto's choice of shoes for today were the same as always, his grey Vans.

"Lizzi-chan! Naruto! I haven't seen you two in over a month!" Kari gasped as she pulled her best friends into a huge hug.

"Well, obviously not! You got to go to New York to see your sister!" Lizzi said playfully.

"Yeah, and not one phone call whatsoever! What's up with that?" Naruto said sarcastically.

Kari rolled her eyes, "Pssh, definitely, because all those calls I made to you two and everyone else were in mine mind?" Kari laughed, "I've missed you guys! Where's everyone else?"

Lizzi and Naruto stared at her, both looking dumbfounded, and finally shrugged simultaneously. "I dunno."

Kari sighed, "Of course. Well, who do you have for homeroom?" She suddenly pulled out her schedule from her messenger bag.

"Hatake," they both said in unison.

"Hatake? Yes, we're all in the same homeroom!," Kari squealed, "What do you have next?"

As they were about to open their mouths to answer, the same old secretary that scolded Seiji (or was it Kosuji?), walked over and rounded at Naruto.

"No skateboarding in the school! I will need to confiscate that... Hm, you must be a freshman, I don't know you're name," she spoke.

"Uzumaki," Naruto rolled his eyes and handed her the skateboard.

"Okay, Uzumaki-kun. You can have this back at the end of the day," the old secretary scoffed and returned to her desk.

"Giving up so easy, Uzumaki? What a loser," Kiba Inuzuka appeared next to the group, followed by his quiet best friend, Shino Aburame

"Fuck off, Kiba, we don't want to deal with your shit on our first day as Freshmen," Lizzi retorted.

Kiba walked over to her, and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Come on, Lizzi-chan, why don't you just forget about them and come hangout with me. You're too fiiine for this loser anyways," Kiba spoke as if he was trying to sound seductive.

Lizzi gave him a disgusted look and grabbed his hand that was currently reaching for her chest. "I told you to fuck. Off." She then twisted his arm in the wrong direction, but released it before it could break.

"Come on, let's go find TenTen-chan and Lee-kun," Lizzi grabbed Kari and Naruto's arm and began to walk away.

"Fucking slut," Kiba called back to her. This not only caught Lizzi's attention, but a few other passing students stopped as well.

Lizzi clenched her fists and turned back at Kiba glaring at him. "What the fuck did you just call me?"

"Kiba, I think you went too far," Shino warned, but Kiba ignored him and smirked cockily, "You heard me, you fucking whore." That was it. It set her off. Without hesitation, Lizzi Kozuki drew back her closed fist and punched Kiba Inuzuka across the face. The blow caused him to fall back and you could already see his cheek bruising.

Lizzi smirked to herself and turned back to her two friends. "Let's go."

The trio, leaving a bruised Kiba and startled crowd, searched the area for their Junior friends, Rock Lee and TenTen. After searching the main hallway for any of their friends, let alone Lee and TenTen, Kari decided to just text them.

_'Hey Ten! Where the hell are you!?'_

Kari shut her phone shut after she sent the message.

"Kari-chan!" Her ears perked up as she heard her name. She turned around to see the owner of the voice was her pink-haired and popular friend, Sakura Haruno.

"Ohayo, Sakura-chan!, what's up?" Kari gave Sakura a quick hug. She was dressed in Aeropostle khakis, white flip-flops and a white tank top.

"Not much," she smiled, "Who do you have for homeroom?" Sakura seemed to be ignoring Lizzi and Naruto, seeing how they weren't "cool" enough for her. Everyone seemed to have a liking for Kari, though.

"Hatake," she replied.

Sakura squealed, "Me too! Oh, and you'll never guess who else is in that class!"

Kari laughed, "Who?"

"Uchiha Sasuke-kun!" Sakura let out yet another squeal. They were soon joined by another popular girl with long, blond hair; Ino Yamanaka.

"Leave him alone, Sakura! We all know that he won't go out with someone as ugly as _you_," Ino scoffed. Ino was dressed in a full Abercombie ensemble. She was wearing a mini-jean skirt and a tight, pink shirt. The two constantly fought with each other, but they were best friends when it came down to it.

"I don't know what you're thinking, Ino, because last I checked, Sasuke didn't like _whores_," Sakura insulted. The two girls both let out a 'Hmph' and walked away, leaving Kari, Lizzi, and Naruto in laughter. Sasuke was a quiet emo boy who rarely talked to anyone besides his close friends.

_"Kiss, kiss, you're my love! _

_Maybe you're my love-"_

Kari's phone started sounding it's text ring tone, Sakura Kiss by Chieko Kawabe. She flipped open her phone and saw that TenTen replied.

_'I'm back by the gym, and you'll never guess who I'm talking to! Come and see'_

With a small smile, Kari closed her phone and led her friends towards the back of the school. There, resided the gym entrance and teacher parking lot, and also...

"Is that... Hyuuga Neji talking to TenTen!?" Kari exclaimed. Lizzi let out a smirk, while Naruto looked dumbfounded.

"Looks like you better tell TenTen to back off your man," Lizzi joked.

Kari's face turned a small shade of pink, "I don't like him or anything... I just think he's-"

"The hottest man alive? We know, Kari-chan," Lizzi laughed, "Come on."

The three walked over to TenTen, Lee and Neji. Lee was wearing bage Aeropostle shorts and a green plaid shirt. TenTen was dressed in a blue, flowy skirt and black tank top. The popular Neji was wearing slightly tight American Eagle jeans and a slim-fitted Taking Back Sunday shirt, so you could see the outline of his muscular torso.

Lee was standing next to TenTen and was obviously trying not to pay attention, seeing how he's had the hugest crush on his best friend for the past two years. TenTen, who was being a little flirtatious and leaning close into him, was talking and giggling with Neji. Neji was, well of course, looking drop dead gorgeous.

When Lee noticed Kari, Lizzi, and Naruto walking towards them, he gave a thankful smile. "Hey, how've you guys been?" Lee asked, desperately trying to make conversation, as the group approached them.

"Pretty good," Kari smiled at him and then her gaze drifted towards Neji, who looked over at the newcomers. His eyes stopped just a little longer at Kari before he turned and walked away.

"I can't believe it!" TenTen squealed after Neji was out of earshot, "_He _was talking to _me_!"

"Yeah..." Kari said, distracted. TenTen cocked an eyebrow at her and was about to speak when they were interrupted by a bell.

"Oh! That's the warning bell! We only have five minutes to get to class," Lee exclaimed.

"Chill, Lee. That's plenty of time," TenTen gave him a sweet smile that made him melt. She pulled at his arm and dragged him off towards an entrance.

"Bye guys!" she waved.

Lizzi gave TenTen a smile and then turned over to Kari, who seemed troubled. "Okay, Kari-chan, I know what's up, but let's just get through the first day before we deal with any drama, kay?" Lizzi said sweetly and Naruto gave her an assuring smile.

A small smile formed on Kari's lips and she nodded, "Alright, let's get to homeroom."

Kari, Lizzi, and Naruto walked into Hatake Kakashi's classroom and looked over the other students. She immediately noticed the pink-haired Sakura sitting in the front row. She was gazing across the room at the raven-haired emo boy known as Sasuke, who took a seat in the back row near the windows. His emo-styled outfit consisted of a tight Boys Like Girls shirt and extremely tight Tilt jeans, which were for girls, of course.

Kari walked over to Sasuke and took a seat in the desk next to his. "So, Sasuke-san, what size are you? Four? Three at the least, right? No way your smaller than me," Kari joked. She had no problem with boys wearing girl's clothing, she actually thought it was hot, but she couldn't help but tease him about it.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "I'm actually a size four. Why? Are you a three?"

Kari laughed, "Hai!"

Seeing his best friend and the boy he hated most made Naruto furious, not to mention extremely jealous. Lizzi, on the other hand, found their conversation amusing. She then looked over to see the jealous look on Naruto's face and rolled her eyes.

"Come on, Naruto, let's sit down," Lizzi grabbed his arm and dragged him over to a seat on the other side of the room. They took a seat next to a red-haired boy who had a petite physique. _Is he knew?_ Lizzi examined his attire. The boy wore black basketball shorts and a loose-fitted white shirt. _I don't recognize him, and I know I would recognize someone as cute as him._

"Oi, hey! Who are you? Are you knew?" Naruto was the first to ask the red head. The boy gave Naruto a side ways glance. "My name is Sabaku Gaara. I moved here recently," he spoke plainly.

Naruto tilted his head, "Eh? Not too talkative, ne? Well, I'm Uzumaki Naruto!"

Lizzi pushed Naruto out of the way and flashed Gaara a smile. "Yo! I'm Lizzi Kozuki, nice to meet you, Gaara-san!" She beamed up at him. Gaara just sent her a simple smirk and a nod.

Naruto pouted. _Pssh, I don't like this guy._

"You like Boys Like Girls? I thought I was the only one! They've only recently gotten big in America," Kari beamed at Sasuke's shirt.

"Yeah," Sasuke grinned, "They're one of my favorite bands."

She couldn't help but squeal. "I love them! The first time I heard Thunder I fell in love. Haha, funny. It's a love song!" Kari rambled.

Sasuke smiled at her. "I heard that they'll be touring in Japan in a few months. I'll definitely be going," he said casually.

Kari's eyes went wide. "No fair! I wish I could go, but there's no chance my mom would buy me tickets. She's so strange, I know she has the money," She rolled her eyes.

"If they are touring here, maybe-" Whatever Sasuke was about to say was cut off by a silver-haired man, carrying a book in one hand and a chart in the other.

"Ohayo, and welcome to Konoha High. I am your homeroom teacher, Kakashi-sensei. Now I shall take attendance," Kakashi said and flipped the chart.

After homeroom, Kari and Sasuke both had Geometry next. Their teacher, Gai, only rambled on about the power of youth and somehow managed to relate it to acute angles. Kari and Sasuke took seats in the back and whispered back and forth to eachother.

"Will you two shut up, I'm trying to sleep," Shikamaru Nara mumbled from the seat next to Kari.

Kari giggled, "Sleeping in class once again, ne, Shika?"

"Who wouldn't during this troublesome class?" Shikamaru said and turned his head to face the windows.

Kari giggled once again and Sasuke smiled at her. "You have a cute laugh," he said, shyly. She blushed slightly, "Heh, thanks."

Kari had Japanese with Lizzi and another sleeping Shikamaru, but sadly, also Kiba. He attempted to ignore what happened earlier that morning and tried to ask Lizzi out. They couldn't wait for History, where they met up with Naruto once again, and the new kid, Gaara. Lizzi took a seat next to him and tried to make conversation, but was doomed by his one-word answers.

After History, the trio headed for lunch and sat with Shikamaru, Chouji, and Lee.

"Huh? Where's TenTen?" Kari asked Lee as he sat down at the lunch table.

Lee frowned and nodded his head to the table diagonal to there's. There, TenTen was sitting next to Neji, giggling and laughing. Sitting with them were Sasuke, Shino and Kiba.

Kari's brow furrowed, "What the hell!? That traitor!"

Lizzi put a hand on her shoulder, "Let it go, Kari. It's no big deal."

Shikamaru yawned, "We don't need drama on the first day, too troublesome."

Kari let out a 'hmph' and walked over to the lunch line. _I know I shouldn't make a big deal out of it but... _

"Hey, Kari!" Kari turned around to see Sasuke approaching her, followed by Neji.

"Oh, hey Sasuke-san, Neji-san," she forced a smile, "What's up?"

Neji pointed ahead of her. "The line?" he said in an obvious tone.

Kari turned around to see the people ahead of her moving. "Heh, sorry!" she apologized and took a step into the kitchen. She grabbed a tray and placed a salad and apple juice on it.

"Salad? And juice? Are you on a diet or something," Neji mused, "You don't look like you should be."

Kari didn't know what he meant by that comment, so she tried to ignore it. "Oh, no! This is just the only good food the school can offer," she laughed.

"I know what you mean," Neji agreed, grabbing a salad and placing it on his tray. He glanced back at her and smiled, causing Kari to blush, but she hid it quickly with a grin.

As Neji, Sasuke, and Kari approached the cash registers, Neji spoke again. "Hey, um, Kari, do you wanna go to the skate park with us after school?" he asked lamely.

Kari was shocked by this request.

_What about TenTen?_

"Um, really? Sure," she smiled.

Sasuke sighed in relief, "Great! Meet us outside the gym doors after school then."

Kari nodded and paid the lunch lady for her meal. After she walked away, Neji turned to Sasuke.

"You owe me for that," he said simply.

Sasuke scratched his head, "Yeah... thanks, Neji!"

The rest of the day went on without incident. Still, Kari's afternoon seemed to drag on. She waited quite impatiently during Art class, but it seemed that her next class, French, was never ending. Kari was glad that gym was last. Hopefully they would spend the class doing something fun.

"Okay kids, for our first class how about we play a few games of... CAPTURE THE FLAG!" the gym teacher, Anko, cheered as she led the class to the football field. After a brief explanation of the rules and splitting the class into two teams, Anko began the game.

Kari was fortunate enough to have Naruto, Lee, and a few upperclassmen on her team. The gym classes were always mixed grades together. The school found it easier for some of the upperclassmen's schedules and such.

Kari pouted as she stood next to Sakura in the middle of the field, "Ugh, I don't want to play! I _hate _this game. Why couldn't we play soccer or something?"

Sakura nodded, "Yeah! Oh, are you playing soccer this year?"

"Mhm. I think the first practice is sometime next week."

At that moment, they saw Shikamaru trying to sneak onto their side of the field. _Shikamaru's too lazy to actually play... Huh, he's coming over here?_

Kari and Sakura cocked an eyebrow as Shikamaru approached them in the field. Kari rolled her eyes.

"Lemme guess; You didn't know anyone on your team?"

Shikamaru nodded lazily, "Yeah, and everyone knows that it sucks being alone during gym. And boring. So troublesome."

Sakura laughed, "Okay, Shikamaru. But you're gonna have to talk about girly stuff with us!"

"Yeah, like tampons!" Kari piped. The two girls broke down laughing as they saw Shikamaru give the most frightened look they've seen.

Their laughing was soon disrupted by a few upperclassmen heading towards them, one on the opposing team.

"Get him, he's got the ball!" Kari recognized this as the voice of her older, red-headed brother.

"Bite me, niisan!" she stuck out her tongue and ignored the senior running past her.

Sasori rolled his eyes at his sister, "Baka."

Kari copied her brothers eye action and turned back to see Sakura gaping at him. She pulled on the same horrified look that Shikamaru had.

"Kari! How come you didn't tell me that your brother's so hot!?" Sakura squealed.

Kari made a puking gesture. "Ew! That's nasty, Sakura. Sasori's a douche."

"Isn't he a senior, anyway?" Shikamaru joined the conversation.

"Yeah, so?" Sakura said in an obvious tone.

"Well, he's a little too old," he answered.

"No he isn't! Right, Kari? You'd go out with a senior! It's only a two year difference."

Kari half-frowned. She didn't really know. "Depends."

"Yeah, like if it was Deidara," Sakura nudged Kari with her elbow.

She let out a disgusted sound, "Ick! That's Sasori's best friend, that'd just be creepy."

"Yeah, but he's so fucking hot!" Sakura gushed.

"Bleh."

"Whatever," Sakura huffed as the bell rang and the class headed to the locker rooms to change.

**Doesn't it remind you of your High School experiences? xD**


	2. You Wanna Hold My Hand

**Just to let all you readers know, don't expect consistent super long chapters like chapter one. I usually don't write that much for one chapter, but there was a lot of characters to introduce (with more to come). And also, please review! They really motivate me to keep writing  
-Yzz**

* * *

"KIBA INUZUKA, GET OUT!" Anko's voice roared through the girl's locker room. Just as he did in middle school, Kiba attempted to spy on the changing and showering girls.

Kari rolled her eyes as she turned off the shower and quickly dried herself off. After changing back into her casual clothes, Kari walked out of the locker room. As she headed towards the school doors, something struck her mind.

_Where was I supposed to meet them...?_

Panicking, Kari looked all around her in the effort to find someone that might know where the ever so popular Hyuuga Neji could be. _God damnit!_

"Um, Kari-san, are you alright?" a soft and quiet voice spoke from behind Kari.

She turned around to see purple-haired girl wearing khaki capris and a plain purple shirt.

"Hinata! Oh, I'm fine... I was just-," Kari paused and thought about something very carefully. Hinata gave her a questioning look, so Kari pressed on. "Do you know where your Neji is?" Kari asked bluntly, "I was supposed to go with him and Sasuke to the skate park."

Hinata tried to think of where she last saw her cousin. "No..., I'm sorry I couldn't have been of any help," Hinata blushed slightly.

_I knew this was how'd she react. This girl is way too shy. Makes me wonder how she became our class's vice president._

Kari gave Hinata a sweet smile, "It's alright, I'm sure I'll find them somewhere. Ja ne, Hinata!" With that, she rushed around the school, trying to find them. After a few minutes of searching, she found herself walking towards the gym. Kari sighed in defeat and slumped to the floor.

The gym door opened and walking in was a tall, skinny brunette. Her hair was long and wavy, reaching her mid-back. Kari recognized her as the popular senior, Kudo Yumi. Everyone in the school knew her, for she was the one who threw all the parties that everyone went to. She knew everyone and had too many friends to count. Not only was she popular, but she got outstanding grades in school, and was all the teachers favorite. Kari also heard that she won Tokyo U's athletic scholarship for softball.

Yumi turned to the sitting Kari. "Excuse me, you're Akasuna Kari, ne?" she asked politely. Kari nodded. "Hyuuga-kun and Uchiha-kun are waiting for you outside," she smiled.

"Oh! Arigato, Kudo-sempai!" Kari thanked as she stood up and swung her bag over her shoulder.

"No problem. And please, call me Yumi-chan, Kari-chan! Ja ne!" Yumi waved and walked off towards the school committee meeting, no wonder.

Kari caught herself gazing at the back of Yumi. She quickly shook her head and headed out the gym doors. Outside, she spotted Neji and Sasuke waiting for her, both of them holding a skateboard. She walked over to them. Sasuke smiled when she approached them while Neji merely looked over at her.

"Gomen! I forgot-" Kari stopped herself. She did not want to admit that she forgot where they told her to meet them. That was embarassing. "I forgot my history homework," she lied.

Neji shrugged, "Whatever. Let's go."

They walked through the high school's student parking lot and down towards the Junior High. The skate park was located between the two schools, right next to the Konoha High's athletic fields.

Kari frowned when they reached the skate park. Waiting outside the gate, she saw TenTen, who was waving at them, mostly Neji.

"TenTen-chan, I didn't know you were gonna be here, too," Kari forced a smile at her friend.

"Oh yeah, Neji invited me," TenTen said cheerfully. "I can't believe it!" she added in a whisper.

Neji and Sasuke walked inside the gate into the skate park and began skating around. Konoha's skate park wasn't too small, but it wasn't that big either. It consisted of a half pipe, a medium sized pool, a few grinding rails, two fun boxes, and numerous jumps. Kari sighed, she could not skate very well and had nothing else to do but listen to TenTen gush over Neji.

TenTen and Kari took a seat on top of the half pipe and leaned against the fence. Kari ignored everything that TenTen said, for most of it consisted of Neji.

_Why did they invite me, anyways? I could be at home right now doing much better and exciting things! Like... _

"Kari-chan! Did you hear me?" TenTen waved a hand in front of a spaced out Kari.

Kari looked over at her friend with a dazed expression, "Huh? Oh, what'd you say?"

TenTen rolled her eyes, "I said, I think Sasuke likes you!"

At this, Kari's eyes widened. Sasuke? Uchiha Sasuke? Hah, like he would have an interest in her. Kari glanced over at Sasuke, who was currently skating in the pool. He was also looking over at Kari.

"Eh? No way... We're friends; we've talked a little, so maybe we wouldn't even be called that!" Kari shook her hands in front of her in denial, "No way, Ten!"

TenTen smirked, "He's been looking over at you this whole time. I bet he's the reason why they invited you! Aw, Kari-chan, you two should go out! Don't tell me that you never thought of Sasuke as anything more than a friend!"

Kari was confused. Sure, she thought Sasuke was attractive. They had a lot in common, but she could never see herself going out with him.

"I dunno, TenTen-chan," Kari shrugged. At that moment, Sasuke and Neji skated over to the two girls.

"You guys wanna go get something to eat? How about McDonalds?" Neji asked, looking from the girls. Sasuke was playing with his board.

"Sure!" TenTen piped, "How about you, Kari-chan?"

Kari shook her head. "I'm going home. I got a lot of homework for the first day of school," she said plainly and stood up. As she jumped down from the half pipe, Sasuke walked over to her. "I'll walk you home," he offered sheepishly. Kari looked over at him. He seemed nervous.

She smiled sweetly, "Sure."

_I don't wanna crush him. At the least, I can be nice to him, ne?_

"I'll see you later, Sasuke!" Neji waved to Sasuke as he walked off with TenTen. They were holding hands.

"Ja ne, Kari-chan!" TenTen quickly waved to Kari and then went back to gazing up at her new love interest.

Kari looked at them walk away, frowning. _This is definitely not what I expected._

"You okay, Kari?" Sasuke asked.

Kari shook her head. She turned and looked at Sasuke, pulling on another sweet smile for his sake. "Daijoubu!" she assured.

Kari and Sasuke walked in the direction of her home. She lived on the border of the lower and middle class sections of Konoha. Her family was not necessarily poor, but they did not have loads of money, either. After all, it was just her mother who had to support two of her children, along with her own mother.

The walk was quiet for the most part. Kari was annoyed while Sasuke was trying not to lose his cool.

"I wouldn't have guessed that you lived in such a, um... Lower class area," Sasuke finally spoke in efforts to make conversation.

"Meh, we're not the wealthiest people around," Kari said lamely with a shrug. She then remembered that she wanted to be sweet to Sasuke, because they were, after all, friends. "What about you, where do you live?" she asked.

Sasuke gave her a surprised look. "That's the first time anyone has asked me that," he smirked. Kari raised an eyebrow, "Eh?" Sasuke pointed in the opposite direction of where they were walking. Kari looked behind her to see the hilly area of Konoha where there were multiple mansions in sight.

"You live in the Hills!?" Kari then mentally smacked herself. He was **Uchiha** Sasuke. He lived in the **Uchiha **Mansion. "Heh, of course! I kind of went brain dead, sorry!" she smiled innocently. Sasuke almost melted to the ground at her captivating smile.

"How are you gonna get home, anyways? That's a pretty far walk!" Kari asked.

Sasuke pulled out his phone and held it up. "I can just ask my brother for a ride. Niisan can be a dick sometimes, but he always seems to give me a ride. I think he might just like showing off his new Porsche," Sasuke laughed. Kari nervously laughed along with him. It was pathetic; she did not know what a Porsche was.

The two chatted about differences of the Hills and Kari's neighborhood until they arrived at her apartment. The sun was still shining and the spring breeze was quite refreshing.

Kari turned to Sasuke to say goodbye, but he was looking at the ground. His cheeks were tinted red.

_He cannot be thinking of kissing me, can he?_

* * *

**Gah! Cliff-hanger! Don't worry, I'm not usually this mean, haha. I'll try and have the next chapter out ASAP! I portrayed TenTen differently than I wanted to o.O I guess she's just one of those characters that writes herself, ne? xD**


	3. You Always Get Hit Out Of Nowhere

**Okay, this did take a little longer than I expected, but it couldn't be helped. I had a little bit of a writer's block when writing the next chapters, and I already told myself that I can only publish a chapter when I have completed (or nearly completed) a chapter that's in progress. Did that make sense? o.O Oh well. I have also been doing a lot of research for this story, too. I think I had already known this, but I probably just forgot, but school in Japan starts in Spring... So I had to edit the last chapter where I said 'late summer breeze' x But hey, at least I know that there's only three years in a Japanese High School!  
Now let's see where we left off...**

* * *

"I'll see you tomorrow, Sasuke! Ja," Kari quickly bid farewell and rushed inside her apartment building. As she climbed the stairs to her apartment, she was filled with mix emotions.

_Why did Neji invite me? If Sasuke wanted to hangout with me, why the hell didn't he just ask me? Also, TenTen should know by now that I have a crush on Neji, but no, she goes off and flirts with him anyways. Neji's flirted with me a few times before, I could've sworn he had some interest me. Anyways, since when did Sasuke like me? Ugh, please let this be a quick crush. I don't like him like that!_

Kari unconsciously slammed open her apartment door that led into her eat-in kitchen. She quickly grabbed an apple off the counter, bit into it, and then slumped onto a couch in the living room. Kari let out an exhausted sigh as she gazed at the TV screen.

"Kari, what's got you in such a bad mood?" Sasori asked as he paused the video game he and Deidara were playing, Dragon Ball Z Sparking Neo. She gave her brother sideways glance and an eye roll.

"Oi, you're brother is just trying to be nice, yeah?" Deidara said with mock sincerity.

Kari took another bite out of her apple. "Yeah, definitely. Because that's Sasori. He is my wonderful, caring oniichan, ne?" she laughed cruelly, "Niisan, what do you want?"

Sasori frowned. "Hai, hai. I have a favor to ask you."

Deidara was seen trying to hold back laughter. Sasori sent him a glare.

"Nani?" Kari asked, confused.

"You know Kudo Yumi, ne?" Sasori asked.

"I ran into her today, but I don't normally talk to her," Kari looked at her brother with curious eyes, "Why?"

Deidara burst out laughing, "Sasori-san has a huuuuge crush on Yumi-chan!"

Sasori turned red and then threw a throw cushion at him. Hah, throwing a throw cushion. Deidara responded by throwing it back at him. Kari could not help but let out a few chuckles herself.

"So what if you like her, what do you want me to do about it? I'm not asking her out for you. You're a senior, niisan, do it yourself," Kari went to stand up but Sasori stopped her.

"No, that's not what I want. I just need an opportunity to talk to her alone," he began shyly, "You know how popular she is! She's always surrounded by other people."

Kari sighed, "Lemme guess: You want me to befriend her and invite her over, don't you?" Sasori nodded. Deidara's laughter could still be heard in the background of the conversation. "Fine. But you owe me, niisan," Kari said and stood up.

"Arigato, neesan!" Sasori called gratefully to his younger sister.

"Hai, hai," Kari waved her hand back at him as she entered her room.

She threw her school bag on her bed and walked over to her desk. She opened her laptop and signed on AIM. Immediately, she got an IM from Lizzi.

_Kozuki-sama: Kari-chan, yoo!_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: oh god, Lizzi-chan, I have too much to tell you right now _

_Kozuki-sama: nani!?_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: You know how Neji invited me to the skate park with him Sasuke, ne?_

_Kozuki-sama: oh yeah, how'd that go??_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: Horrible! Neji didn't want me there, Sasuke did! And to make it worst, TenTen was there, too! I think her and Neji are together now :_

_Kozuki-sama: TT_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: I know! Blehh, anyways, how has your afternoon been?_

_Kozuki-sama: I don't mean to rub it in your face buuut, ... it's been wonderful :3_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: ?_

_Kozuki-sama: uno momento! I'll call you!_

Kari got her phone out of her bag and waited for it to ring.

"Okay, Lizzi-chan, what's up?" she said into the phone as soon it rang.

"You know the new kid, Gaara-san?" Lizzi asked from the other end.

"Oh yeah, the one you were drooling over?" Kari laughed.

"Urusei! But, anyways, I met his sister today in gym class, and she invited me over their house tomorrow!"

"That's kinda creepy, you know."

"Nani? What's so creepy about it?"

"It sounds like you're hanging out with his sister just to see Gaara. I think it's more creepy than rude, actually."

"Well, no, I do like Temari. She's really cool! She's a senior. It's just an upside to being friends with her, you know?"

Kari laughed, "Whatever you say, Lizzi-chan. I'll talk to you later." She hung up her phone just as she heard an IM alert from her computer.

"Eh?" Kari walked over and sat down at her computer once again to see whom the IM was from.

_1010: This may have been the best day of my life._

Kari rolled her eyes at TenTen's message.

_Kari of teh Red Sand: Are you and Neji going out?_

_1010: Well, not exactly..._

_Kari of teh Red Sand: o.O?_

_1010: We kinda... hooked up ._

_Kari of teh Red Sand: OO TENTEN-CHAN! YOU WHORE!_

_1010: I know, I know! But, you know how fucking hot that kid is! Don't tell me that you wouldn't have done the same ;P_

_1010: But anyways, what happened with you and Sasuke?_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: He tried to kiss me goodbye ._

_1010: !?_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: Well, he didn't try to, but he was about to before I rushed into my house._

_1010: I still can't believe you don't like him. If I wasn't involved with Neji right now, I would soo be after Sasuke._

_Kari of teh Red Sand: TenTen... Shuddup._

Kari ignored whatever messages TenTen sent her after that and decided to talk to someone who wouldn't annoy her so much.

_Yui's online, she's nice. I wonder why I don't hangout with her as much as I should..._

Hira Yui was a shy and sweet second year. She didn't seem to hang out with many people, but she was well liked in school. The closest person to a best friend she had was Hinata. That's the only person she has ever been spotted with outside of school.

_Kari of teh Red Sand: yo, Yui, what's up?_

_YuiStar: Can you hold on a few minutes? I need to finish this episode of Haruhi._

_Kari of teh Red Sand: Haruhi? Um, sure._

Kari stared at the name 'Haruhi' that Yui typed. What the hell was Haruhi?

_YuiStar: Gomen! I was watching my Haruhi Suzumiya no Yuutsu DVD. I love this anime..._

Kari blinked. _Oh! It's an anime!_ She laughed at herself.

_Kari of teh Red Sand: So that's what you do all day, Yui-chan? You're an otaku?_

_YuiStar: Mhm, much pride in it. Actually, you would probably like this series. You should watch it! _

_YuiStar: Or Lucky Star. They're both really good! I'll lend you my DVDs if you want! _

_Kari of teh Red Sand: Sure! I think I also saw some of Lucky Star on TV one day. I really liked it!_

_YuiStar: I'll bring it to school tomorrow, I'm sure you'll love it_

_YuiStar: I gotta go now, ttyl Kari-chan_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: Ja ne!_

So that was Yui's big secret? Well, not a secret, but the reason why she's never seen out of school. She's an otaku; A crazed, anime-obsessed freak. Kari laughed, "Yui is so adorable."

Kari looked at the computer's clock: 7:38.

"It's that late already!?" Seeing the time, Kari quickly put up an away message.

"Shit, it's my day to cook dinner!" Kari jumped up from her seat and rushed into the kitchen. She was shocked when she found her brother and grandmother already eating.

"I decided to make dinner tonight, neesan," Sasori smiled up from his food. Kari knew what he was doing. She sat down where her plate was set.

"Don't think that this is going to be your payment, niisan," Kari grinned.

Their grandmother glanced from both Sasori and Kari. "What are you two talking about?" she asked.

"Nothing, Chiyo-baachan!" both grandchildren said in unison. This was not something that the two of them would talk about with their grandmother. That would just be strange.

"Okaasan should be home soon, ne?" Kari asked as she cleared her plate from the kitchen table.

"Hai, it's almost eight," Chiyo nodded as she slowly ate her dinner.

Kari placed her plate in the dishwasher and looked over at her brother. "Oi, has Deidara gone home already?" she asked him. Usually, Deidara stays at their house until at least ten o'clock.

"No, he's in the living room playing Final Fantasy," Sasori said as he cleared his plate.

"Which one?"

"Seven."

With that, Kari hurried into the living room to watch Deidara play.

"Go left, Deidara-sempaiii!" Kari joked as Deidara was fighting a boss.

Deidara scowled, "For the last time, yeah, I can't go left!"

Kari giggled, "I still think you should go left."

"It's almost ten, shouldn't you be in bed, freshman."

"Ouch, a freshman insult," Kari rolled her eyes, "At least I'm not a loser, art-obsessed senior."

"Urusei! Aw, damn it! Look what you made me do!" Deidara cried as he accidentally used Cure 3 on his opponent.

Kari burst out laughing, "I'm going to bed. Nightie night, Deidara-sempai!" And Kari laughed into her room. She fell onto her bed and closed her eyes momentarily. Suddenly, Kari felt a furry something walking on her stomach. She opened her eyes to see her cat. "Bakae-chan, konnichiwa," Kari smiled and reached her hand out to pet the cat. Kari then got up and left Bakae to curl up and sleep on her bed.

She changed into an over-sized shirt and sat down at her computer. Although she was tired, Kari didn't want to go to bed. Insomnia; Sometimes Kari believed that she had a small case of it... occasionally. Kari sighed and put on her American Music play list. "Play Crack the Sky" by Brand New could be heard through the computer speakers.

_"Sent out an SOS call_

_It was a quarter past four in the morning_

_When the storm broke our second anchor line"_

As Kari was lying back in her computer chair, listening to the mature lyrics of Jesse Lacey, she heard an IM alert interrupt the song. It was Sasuke.

_"What they call love is risk_

_'Cause you always get hit out of nowhere_

_By some wave and end up on your own"_

_xxAvenger: hey_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: hey, Sasuke_

It took Sasuke a couple of minutes to reply.

_xxAvenger: how are you?_

_Kari of teh Red Sand: kinda tired, you?_

_xxAvenger: same._

_Kari of teh Red Sand: yeah..._

Kari rolled her eyes at Sasuke's nervousness. Frankly, she had become annoyed with him. This sounds bad, but she just wants him to ask her out so she can turn him down and get on with her life.

_xxAvenger: do you wanna go to the movies on Friday?_

Bingo. Now she just needed to be sweet about it... but in her own normally playful way.

_Kari of teh Red Sand: Sasuke Uchiha, are you ask me out?_

_xxAvenger: Well, yeah._

_Kari of teh Red Sand: Sasuke, I'm sorry, but I just don't like you in that way._

_..._

_Kari of teh Red Sand: I don't mean to hurt you, I just hope we can still be friends. And I really mean that, because I value you as a good friend._

_xxAvenger: okay._

_xxAvenger has signed off_

Kari frowned. She hurt him, she knew it, and she felt horrible about it. Kari spent the rest of the night listening to music and zoning out.

* * *

**Taw, poor emo boy. I think I have made Sasuke more of the typical emo boy than I had planned to... But I think somewhere he does still hold his rudeness and cocky side. That will be shown in later chapters. Also, I know many of you may be wondering why this is rated M when no M material has appeared... Well, it will definitely appear in future chapters. OO YZZ-SAMA, YOU PERV!**

ahem **Please review.**


	4. The Best Damn Thing

**I don't think this chapter is that exciting :x But it is necessary. Did you know that I still don't know how to spell necessary? I have to use spell check xD And I use that word a good amount of times, I think I should know how to spell it by now! I spell it differently each time, too... Oh jeez. Anywho, read, review, and enjoy!**

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At seven o'clock in the morning, an alarm sounded in Kari's room. Startled, she jumped up from her desk and landed on the floor. She had just fallen asleep maybe an hour or two before. Kari glared up at her alarm next to her bed.

"Someday, I _will _kill you," she muttered and pulled herself up from the floor. She grabbed a towel and walked over to the bathroom, but it was already occupied. "NIISAN!" she hollered at the door. Sasori knew that she got the shower first, seeing how she had to leave when her mother left for work while Sasori was able to leave whenever he pleased. He didn't want to give Kari a ride, too, because he wouldn't have room for his friends.

"Hai, hai," Sasori mumbled as he opened the door and walked pass Kari and into his room. Kari rolled her eyes and went in the bathroom to take a shower and get ready for her second day of school.

Kari tried to wake herself up by listening to some of Avril Lavigne's new music. The upbeat, pop music should give her some energy. Kari asked her mom to drop her off at the corner store down the street from the school. There, she bought a Mountain Dew and two energy drinks. Kari wasn't too fond of coffee, unless it was made perfectly, which apparently no one was able to do, not even her. So, she always settled for other caffeine alternatives.

It was only eight o'clock. Kari had a half hour to get to the school, which was five minutes away from her. She sighed, took a sip of her Mountain Dew, and slowly started walking. Without noticing, Kari started singing along with her iPod.

_"And yeah yeah yeah I'm a lot to handle_

_You don't know trouble but I'm a hell of a scandal_

_Me I'm a scene I'm a drama queen_

_I'm the best damn thing that your eyes have ever seen"_

Suddenly, Kari felt a tap on her shoulder. She took out an ear bud and turned around to see Shikamaru walking behind her.

"What the hell are you singing?" he asked.

Kari blushed. "I was," she gulped, "singing?"

Shikamaru shrugged, "Well, at first I thought there was a dying puppy..." Kari pushed him playfully, "Urusei, Shika-baka."

"So says the one who just barely made it into high school," he smirked.

"I was still getting used to Japanese schools!" she argued.

"That was your third year in Japan, Kari."

"...Shut up. I spent most of my time sleeping."

"Yeah, and so do I, but I still manage to pass without much effort," Shikamaru now just began teasing her.

Kari rolled her eyes, "Well, sorry I'm not a super genius like you, Shikamaru-sama."

The two were now approaching the cafeteria entrance of Konoha High.

"I like the sound of that, much better than 'Shika' or 'Shika-baka.' I think you should call me that from now on," Shikamaru joked.

"Okay," Kari grinned mischievously and ran off ahead of Shikamaru and into the cafeteria. She walked over to Lizzi and Naruto who were both currently talking to Hinata and Yui at a table. Well, more like standing with them seeing how Hinata was playing with her fingers and blushing while Yui had her head in a manga book.

"Yo!" Kari greeted the group. She looked behind her to see Shikamaru walking towards them. "Oh, Shikamaru-sama is coming! Everyone make way!" she said unnecessarily loudly. A few people around them turned to see what the hell she was talking about.

"Kari, you're making a fool out of yourself," Shikamaru sighed and took a seat at the table.

"Everyone should already know that I'm a fool by now. I just wanted to make a fool out of you," Kari had a playful smile across her lips.

"Troublesome." Shikamaru put his head on the table and soon dozed off.

Yui looked up at Kari and closed her manga. "Kari-chan, you wanted to borrow this, ne?" she asked as she pulled out a DVD from her bag. Kari looked at it to be the complete Lucky Star series.

"Oh yes! Thank you, Yui-chan," she smiled and received the DVD case.

Lizzi looked over at Kari with a horrified look. "Oh kami-sama! My best friend is going to become an otaku!" she cried out with fake fear. This was Lizzi's way of teasing her.

Kari playfully shoved Lizzi. "Urusei. Besides, I know you're really into Chobits. You have the whole manga and anime series!"

She stuck out her tongue, "Nyah! So what?" The two friends started laughing. Their laughter was soon cut short though by the warning bell. Kari, Lizzi, and Naruto walked off towards their homeroom. On their way, they saw Sasuke. Once he looked at Kari, he fastened his pace.

"Eh? What was that about?" Lizzi asked when Sasuke was out of earshot.

Kari completely forgot about what had happened last night. She explained it to Lizzi and Naruto.

"You actually told him that you still wanted to be friends?" Naruto asked in half disgust and half disbelief.

"Naruto, I know you don't like him, but I like him."

"Then why didn't you say yes when he asked you out?" Naruto asked.

"Not like that! You're so dense," Kari gave him a sideways glare, "Then what do you mean?"

Lizzi answered for him. "Kari, you never tell a guy that you just want to be friends. Even if you add that you seriously mean it. No matter what, they'll think you're just trying to be nice. If you genuinely want to be friends with him, then you didn't have to say anything, you just had to show you wanted to remain friends," she explained.

Kari cocked and eyebrow. "And... Can't I do both?"

"Well, yeah, but it will be hard to convince him. Everytime you ask to hangout, he'll think that you're just pitying him or something."

Her head was spinning. This was too confusing. "And Shikamaru says that girls are troublesome."

The trio walked into Kakashi's classroom and took seats in the third row, opposite the windows. Lizzi sat directly behind Gaara. The two seemed to have a longer conversation than they had yesterday, only to Lizzi's delight.

Kari began zoning out. The caffeine hadn't kicked in yet. "Kari-chan!" a pink haired girl caught her attention.

"Hey, Sakura-chan. What's up?" she asked groggily.

"Is it true that you and Sasuke were on a date yesterday?" she asked with sadness and excitement in her voice.

Kari went wide eyed. This surely woke her up. "No!" she rapidly shook her head, "We were hanging out, but it wasn't a date." Sakura sighed in relief, "Oh thank goodness! I was worried." Sakura laughed and then walked over to Sasuke. He was staring at Kari with sorrow in his eyes.

Kari tried to ignore Sasuke for the rest of the day. This was actually pretty easy, seeing how she managed to sleep in every class that she had with him, and a few that she didn't. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to get much sleep in her English class. To be frank, the class was "the dumb class." Of course the "dumb class" is also the loudest class.

"Yamanaka Ino! Kisaragi Ayame! Stop talking, you two!" Kurenai scolded the two cheerleaders. They giggled and returned to their conversation. Kurenai rolled her eyes and began writing an assignment on the board which no one was going to do. Yes, she knew that.

Kiba tapped Lizzi's shoulder from behind her. "Oi, Lizzi! You wanna go to the mall after school?" he asked with a smirk planted on his face. Lizzi shook her head. "Nope, I got plans," she rejected with no disappointment at all. Kiba pouted.

"Kiba, why don't you just give up?" Shino asked his best friend. He shot Shino a look. "Hell no!"

Shikamaru and Kari yawned simultaneously. "Troublesome," Shikamaru mumbled.

Kari looked up at Shikamaru. "For once, Shikamaru-sama, I agree with that."

He glared at Kari, "Stop calling me that!" She gave him a tired smile, "Hai, Shikamaru-sama," and rested her head back on her desk.

After lunch, Kari had her study hall. Her art class and study rotated each day, as did her gym and computer class.

Kari walked into the Large Group Room and almost fainted. She looked at all the students and knew that this was going to be a **great **class. The only fellow freshmen in the class were Shikamaru and Sakura. Kari recognized the second year twins, Seiji and Kosuji, from her French class. Lee was also in the study, but unfortunately, so were TenTen and Neji. That would normally be a good thing. To make things worse, Sasori was also in the class, along with a few of his third year friends, Itachi, Kisame, Pain, and Konan. She also noticed Yumi, who was currently talking to Konan and a girl that she didn't recognize.

Lee walked over to Kari and had a troubled look on his face. "Kari-san..." he began, but didn't finish. She frowned and looked over to see Neji and TenTen, holding hands and sitting next to eachother. "Don't worry, Lee-san," Kari tried to give Lee an assuring smile, but she was afraid that she had failed.

Kari and Lee took seats on the opposite side of the room as TenTen and Neji. Yui soon walked over to them and sat next to Kari. She handed her a manga book. "Here." Kari looked at it questionably. Yui had already lent her a whole anime series, so why was she being so nice to offer her something else?

"It's Cardcaptor Sakura. I don't know how this happened, but I have two of the first volume! When I was searching my room yesterday for one of my cosplay outfits, I found this," Yui laughed, "It's a cute series. You should read it."

Kari was a little dumbfounded, but she shook off the randomness and smile at her friend. "Arigato, Yui-chan."

"No problem" Yui pulled out the manga that she was reading that morning and began to read. Kari also spent the rest of the period reading her new manga, but then ended up falling asleep.

When the bell rang after computer class at three o'clock, Kari was thankful it was the end of the day. After getting her stuff from her locker, she ran quickly to the student parking lot in front of the cafeteria. Kari scanned the parking lot and found her brother's car and walked over to it.

"Niisan, hurry up! I really wanna go home and sleep," Kari whined. A few minutes passed and finally Sasori and Deidara approached the car. Despite her fatigue, Kari somehow managed to pull on a sweet and pleading smile.

Sasori looked his sister up and down with a cocked eyebrow. "Sasori, I think your neechan wants a ride home," Deidara laughed. Sasori rolled his eyes and climbed into his car. Deidara followed by sitting in the passenger seat. He then started the engine.

"ONIICHAN! ONEGAI!" Kari pleaded. Sasori sighed and motioned for his sister to get into the backseat. "Arigato, oniichan," she thanked him gratefully.

_No long walk for me._

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**Okay, why do I have such a lame ending to this chapter? Like, honestly, it ends showing how lazy Kari is xD Well, that is our Kari-chan, ne? REVIEW!**


	5. Bring It! Sailor Fuku?

**I really, really, really like this chapter. I had so much fun writing it, too! I hope you all like it, too **

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Kari went to sleep as soon as she got home. She did not wake up until three in the morning, and being too early to start getting ready for school; Kari decided to start watching Lucky Star.

_"aimai san-SENCHI sorya puni tte koto kai? cho!_

_RAPPINGU ga seifuku... daaa furi tte kotanai puu._

_ganbaccha yacchacha_

_sonto KYAACCHI & Release gyo_

_ase (Fuu) ase (Fuu) no tanima ni Darlin' Darlin' FREEZE!!"_

She fell in love. Not only with the song and the opening, but she also fell in love with the anime. Kari spent the rest of the night watching the anime that Yui lent her and got up to episode nine when she realized that it was already 7:30am. Kari rushed getting ready, skipping her shower, and managed to be ready at 8:01. Perfect.

"Kari, are you ready?" Kari's mother asked her as she slipped on her messenger bag.

"Hai!" Kari answered with a smile and the two left.

Throughout the day, Kari's worries seemed to be almost nonexistent. All she could think of was Konata, Kagami, Tsukasa, and Miyuki. The only person whom Kari even held a real conversation with was Yui during Art class. They of course discussed Lucky Star, and the first volume of Cardcaptor Sakura.

As soon as Kari arrived home that day, she watched Lucky Star until dinner time. She ate dinner, and then went to sleep.

This was how Kari spent the rest of her week. Even on Saturday, she did not accept Shikamaru, Chouji, and Naruto's offer to go to the Arcade after their half day of school. However, when Sakura invited her to attend the Sakura festival in Konoha on Sunday, she very willingly accepted. Nothing could stop Kari from seeing the Sakura trees blossoming. She did not realize, either, that she missed them all week, and Sunday was probably the last chance she would be able to see them. It was already April twelfth, so she was lucky that they were still in bloom.

Sunday morning, Kari woke up at ten o'clock (which is early, for her anyways) and began getting ready. She took a shower and her mother helped her with the kimono. Kari had a special Sakura kimono that she wore every year to the festival. It was black decorated with pink cherry blossoms and the obi was a soft, light pink color. After putting on her kimono, Kari put her hair up in a smooth and elegant high bun.

At one o'clock, Kari heard her cell phone ring with her new ring tone: "Motteke! Sailor Fuku" by Aya Hirano, Fukuhara Kaori, and Endo Aya. It was also the theme song for Lucky Star... of course.

_"Motte ike!_

_Saigo ni waracchau no wa atashi no hazu_

_SEIRAA fuku da kara desu ketsuron"_

"Moshi, moshi," Kari answered.

"Moshi moshi, Kari-chan! Are you ready?" Sakura asked from the other line.

"Almost, I just need to put on my geta," Kari informed. She was currently retrieving her wooden sandals from her closet.

"Hai! Ino, Ayame, and I will be waiting outside your apartment in a few minutes. We'll walk from there, ne?"

"Kay, ja ne," Kari hung up her phone and put it inside her Sakura decorated purse. She slipped on her sandals and as she walked to the apartment door, she caught the reflection of herself in a mirror.

_I don't think I have ever looked so Japanese._

Kari often acted more of an American and had more American-oriented interests, but today, she looked like she was born and raised in Japan.

_Okasan must be happy._ She smiled at her reflection. "Ittekimasu," she called and exited the apartment.

"Kari-chan, you look so pretty!" Sakura gushed when she, Ino, and Ayame met up with Kari.

"Thank you, Sakura-chan. You do, too!" Kari complimented.

Sakura was wearing a red kimono with a pink obi sash that was decorated with red Sakura blossoms. Ino was wearing a dark purple kimono, which was decorated with light purple Sakura designs. Ayame's was the same, except in shades of blue instead. Kari never really hung out with Ayame that much, as she did with Sakura and occasionally Ino. Ayame was a short girl with shoulder length black hair, which was short in the front and got longer in the back. Her eyes were a very dark brown, almost black. Ayame wasn't very beautiful, cute rather. Unfortunately, she was also somewhat dense.

The foursome walked to the special Cherry Blossom park in the center of Konoha, which was only a few blocks from Kari's home. The Sakura Festival was held here every year. The park was fairly big and was surrounded by what seemed to be a forest. Once passed the forestry part and into the inner area, there were paths and a countless number of Sakura trees. The paths were where all the booths would be set up for festivals. Even on the far North side of the park, there was a small Ferris wheel. Since it was not dark out yet, the festival game and food booths were not illuminated with colorful lights. However, the park was filled with Sakura trees that were blossoming. Cherry Blossom park was like a pink blob.

As they walked through the walkway of the park, Kari looked around at all the trees. She was beaming at all the blossoms that the wind blew around her. In the middle of the park, next to the park's Wish Tree, men were setting up a fireworks launch.

Ayame jumped up excitedly and shook Ino. "Ino-chan, look! There's going to be fireworks!" she exclaimed.

Ino laughed at her friend, "Aya-chan, there's _always _fireworks here." This was obvious. Sakura and Kari joined in on the laughter.

The group soon entered the pathway where all the food and game booths were set up. As they were buying chocobanana, three familiar faces caught Kari's eyes. "Naruto! Chouji! Shikamaru-sama!" she called out to her friends. As she expected, none of them were dressed in kimono.

"Kari, please, stop calling me that," Shikamaru grumbled when he approached Kari. Kari took a bite of her chocolate covered banana and stuck out her tongue so Shikamaru could see it. "Bite me," she teased. Shikamaru rolled his eyes, "Troublesome."

"Ah! I forgot my money!" Naruto whined. He also ordered a chocobanana, but only to discover that he had no wallet. Naruto pouted.

Sakura let out a huff, "Here, I'll pay." She paid her yen to the women inside the booth and Naruto happily ate his banana. "Arigato, Sakura-chan!"

"You owe me 300 yen, Naruto," Sakura informed.

"Sakura-chan, you can't just pay for me out of the goodwill in your heart!" Naruto pleaded. Sakura shook her head, "Don't call me that."

"Call you what, Sakura-chan?"

"_That_."

"Nani? Sakura-chan?"

"Hai. Don't call me Sakura-chan."

"Why?"

"JUST DON'T!" Sakura yelled. Naruto's face filled with fear. "Hai, Sakura-sama," he squeaked. Sakura began yelling again, but the rest allowed it to fade into background noise.

Kari surveyed the game booths to find one she wanted to play. She spotted one further down the path. "Let's play this one! Haiyaku, before someone else starts playing ahead of us!" Kari pulled Shikamaru down the path, followed by Chouji, Ino, and Ayame. She led them to a shooting game.

"I'm going for that prize!" Kari pointed to a stuffed Hello Kitty wearing a blue kimono. It was one of the big prizes, so she would have to hit the target in less than two shots. She paid the man 200 yen for three shots.

BANG! And a miss.

BANG! And another miss.

Kari sighed, "Well, if I get this one, at least I'll get a small prize." She said this more to herself than to anyone else.

BANG! And yet a third miss.

"Oh, kami-sama! Why do you hate me so?" Kari mock fainted.

Chouji took the gun next and handed the man his yen.

BANG! And a hit!

"That one," Chouji pointed to the Hello Kitty plush that Kari wanted. The man then handed it to Chouji, who gave it to Kari.

"Aw, Chouji, arigato!" Kari thanked and smiled sweetly at her friend.

"It's fine, I know you like Hello Kitty, Kari," Chouji smiled, "Now I want some Korean Barbeque... There's a stall here, isn't there?" However, as Chouji went to walk away, Ino grabbed his arm.

"Chouji, I want that plushie!" Ino pointed at a giant stuffed teddy bear. Another big prize. "I'll give you the yen for it. Please, Chouji! Oh, and Aya-chan wants that Monokuro Boo plush." Reluctantly, Chouji tried to win the two girls their prizes.

"Shikamaru-sama, I want shaved ice!" Kari pulled on Shikamaru's hand once again, this time dragging him to a shaved ice stall on the other side of the park. The two ordered their shaved ice, but as Kari went to pull out her money, Shikamaru stopped her.

"The woman shouldn't pay," he said in monotone and handed the cashier 400 yen in exchange for the two shaved ice snacks. Kari looked at Shikamaru in surprise. He looked back at her and raised an eyebrow, "Nani?" Kari just giggled, "Betsuni, Shikamaru-sama."

Shikamaru sighed out his favorite word and the two began walking again, eating their shaved ice. As they walked by one of the shop booths, a Konata plushie caught her eye. Konata was wearing her sailor fuku, which most Japanese schoolgirls wore. In fact, now that Kari thought about it, she did not know any other school that did not have a standard uniform.

"Oi, Shikamaru-sama, since you're so smart, I need to ask you something," Kari began. Shikamaru seemed curious. "Why don't we wear uniforms?"

He did not know the answer and shrugged. Kari blew at a piece of fallen hair from her bun. "I wanna wear a sailor fuku," she mumbled. Shikamaru laughed, "Yeah, I'd like to see you in one, too." Kari stuck out her tongue, "Pervert!" The two began laughing.

"Kari-chan!" TenTen's voice reached Kari's ears. She turned around to see TenTen holding hands with Neji and walking towards her. TenTen was dressed in a dark pink kimono with white cherry blossoms going up the left side. Neji was wearing an off-white Hyuuga robe.

"Konbanwa, TenTen-chan," Kari smiled, "Enjoying the festival?"

TenTen nodded, "Yeah, Neji and I are having a lot of fun. Oh, look! He won me Inu-chan." She held up a stuffed puppy that she was carrying in her arms. Neji just smiled.

"Well, we're going on the Ferris wheel now. Ja ne, Kari-chan!" She didn't even wait for a response as her and Neji rushed off to the ferris wheel.

Kari rolled her eyes. "You know, Shikamaru, I hate it when girls change once they like someone. It's troublesome."

"Yeah, I know. The boy would rather them stay the same, too," he added.

"Well, who cares? I want another toy!" Kari cheered and pulled Shikamaru to another game booth. This one was a ring toss. To win a prize, you would have to throw a ring over it.

"Yosh! They have Pokemon plushies! I think I'll aim for... Clefairy!" Kari paid 500 yen for five tosses. Sadly, she missed every time. "This isn't fair! I'm no good at these games," she whined.

Shikamaru sighed and tried the game. He did not win a Clefairy, but his ring did go over a Stantler. "I know it's not what you wanted, but take it and be happy," he said plainly and handed the toy to Kari.

Kari beamed up at him, "Arigato, Shikamaru-sama!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a hug. Shikamaru turned a slight shade of red. "It's fine," he said and backed out of the hug.

The pair began walking again. Kari played with her Hello Kitty and Stantler, making them talk to eachother and such. She was actually acting somewhat childish. A handful of passer-byers gave Kari strange looks, but she didn't even notice them.

"Kari, you can act like such a kid sometimes," Shikamaru said with a smirk. She shrugged "Meh..." Kari wasn't really paying attention to what he said. "Ne, Shikamaru-sama, Shika means deer, doesn't it?" she asked.

"Uh... Yeah," he answered.

"You're a Stantler!" Kari laughed and shoved her Pokemon plush in Shikamaru's face, "I'm gonna name him Shikamaru-sama!" Shikamaru looked annoyed, but he really wasn't.

The sun was almost out of sight, but it could still be seen peaking over the horizon. The lights for the booths had all lit up and the park was very colorful. Kari and Shikamaru decided to take a rest and sat down on one of the numerous benches.

"Oi, Kari-" Shikamaru began, but he was cut off.

"Kari-chan! Shikamaru!" Lizzi came running up to them.

She was not dressed in kimono, just a black sweatshirt and jean Bermuda shorts. Gaara, the unfamiliar blond girl in her Study, and another unknown brown-haired boy, soon accompanied her. They weren't dressed up either. Gaara was wearing an oversize white and black sweatshirt and jean shorts. The girl was wearing a jean mini-skirt and white T-shirt. She was tall and had an athletic build. Kari thought she must be a third year. The other boy was wearing a black sweat shirt and loose jeans. He was also pretty tall but was slightly chubby.

"This is Gaara's sister and brother, Temari and Kankuro," Lizzi introduced them, "And these are my friends Kari and Shikamaru."

"Lizzi, why aren't you wearing kimono?" Kari asked persistently.

"I didn't feel like going through the hassle of putting it on," she laughed, "Plus, I was running late already. We just got here."

Kari understood and nodded. Her eyes then wandered to the Ferris wheel behind the group. She watched it go around and around. "I wanna go on the Ferris wheel!" she exclaimed.

Lizzi agreed, "Yeah! That sounds like fun! What about you, Gaara?" The quiet red head nodded. Lizzi then turned to his siblings.

Temari shook her head, "I just saw Konan and Yumi, you don't mind if I go meet up with them, do you?" Lizzi waved a hand as to say, "Go ahead." Kankuro had also found some other friends. The second years, Seiji and Kosuji, came up to him. "Kankuro-kun, let's go get goldfish!" they both said in unison and left for the goldfish scooping booth.

"Well, I suppose that it's just us four," Lizzi said and began to walk towards the Ferris wheel.

"Yeah, let's go, Shikamaru-sama!" Kari took his hand. She did not so much as pull it this time as just hold it.

The foursome rode the Ferris wheel a few times, seeing how Lizzi and Kari wanted to go on one time after another. Afterwards, they also went to the goldfish booth. Lizzi managed to catch one, as Kari was to no avail. Gaara and Shikamaru were indifferent to the attractions. Kari was then set on getting a water balloon, so they went to that booth next. Kari was holding Shikamaru's hand the whole time.

"Why is it I can't get just **one **prize by myself?" Kari complained as she failed at her second attempt to get a water balloon. The one that she wanted was red and decorated with pink cherry blossoms. It was the only one left in the booth.

The man who ran the booth saw Kari pouting. "I'll let you have one more try on the house," he smiled at her. He seemed pretty old and had balding, grey hair.

"Arigatou gozaimasu!" she bowed slightly towards him and once again, attempted to retrieve her favored water balloon, and alas, she did it! "Yatta!" she exclaimed.

"Sugoi! Kari-chan, that one's pretty!" Lizzi stared at it in amazement.

"I think it's a miracle that she even managed to get it," Shikamaru teased. Kari stuck out her tongue, "Meanie!"

"I think the fireworks are about to start," Gaara interrupted in a monotone voice.

The group moved towards the center of the park, so they could see them being launched. It was a very romantic seen. Among the stars, the fireworks spread out in various colors. The explosions of color caught everyone's attention. Kari, Shikamaru, Lizzi, and Gaara were soon joined by the rest of their friends. They all enjoyed the sight and took in the memorable atmosphere.

Shikamaru and Kari were still holding hands. Kari looked up at Shikamaru, who was looking down at her. She smiled and was thankful it was dark so he could not see her blush. Shikamaru grabbed her other hand and moved his face into hers. Soon, their lips locked as the fireworks finale started.

What they were unaware of, though, is that there was an unexpected viewer.

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**ZOMG! WHO ES UNEXPECTED VIEWER!?11?! ahem I guess that last line really tips off that there's not going to be a very carefree and happy chapter for a while... DRAMA! Dundunduuunnn. Hehe, I'm in a really crazy mood right now xD Hope you enjoyed it! Please review!**


	6. Boys Don't Cry

**So, it really has been too long. Like, 4-5 months too long. x| But, this is pretty long. And the next chapter is pretty long. The chapter after that is probably gonna be pretty short. But yeah, things are gonna get pretty intense. It is a drama, after all! Now, enjoy :]**

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"No, Lizzi-chan, I wasn't on a date with him!" Kari tried to convince her best friend. They were currently eating inside of a McDonald's resturant. It was the day after the Sakura Festival, and somehow everyone in school believed that Kari and Shikamaru were dating.

"Really, then? Well, if it wasn't a date, then why'd you kiss him?" Lizzi asked as she took a sip of her soda.

Kari sighed, "I don't know. I didn't even know I liked the kid!"

"That makes two of us," Lizzi murmured.

"Well, what am I supposed to do!?" Kari became very anxious, "It was so awkward in school today! I don't believe that I have ever gone a day without speaking to Nara Shikamaru. I didn't even realize that he was in almost all of my classes! Did you know that, 'cause I didn't!" Kari was in a panic, and it was showing quite clearly.

Lizzi smiled warmly at Kari. Her expression was very caring and understanding, which was quite strange and abnormal. Usually, the two were constantly poking fun at one another and such. They didn't seem like best friends, yet at the same time, it was obvious.

"Ne, Kari-chan? How about you just act normal? Then, if he actually likes you, he will ask you out. And if not, well, end of story!" Lizzi suggested.

"I guess so... Whatever," Kari said in an exhausted voice.

The door opened and in walked Temari, Yumi, and Konan. When they spotted Kari and Lizzi, they waved and walked over. Yumi was pulling something out of her bag as she approached them.

"Konnichiwa!" Yumi greeted and handed a paper crane to Kari. Although utterly confused, Kari accepted it. Seeing her expression, Yumi laughed at herself and explained. "It's an invitation to my party during Golden Week! May 1st, tell your friends!" Yumi was rather cheerful and excited as she spoke, but it seemed rehearsed.

Kari smiled at the senior and opened up the crane. Inside it was the information concerning the party. Lizzi was looking on, but then caught herself marveling at the paper.

"These fold lines are completely even!" she admired, "This is an absolutely perfect crane! Who was the genius that folded it?"

"That would be the origami goddess, Konan-chan!" Temari grinned and tapped her hand on her friend's shoulder.

Konan simply smiled with a modest sense. "It's nothing, really," she spoke quietly. She sounded somewhat embarrassed.

_I still need to talk to Yumi about niisan!_

"Ano, Yumi-chan-"

_"Let me be with you~"_

Unfortunately, Kari was cut off by Lizzi's astonishingly loud ringtone. Lizzi pulled out her cell phone from the contents of her pocket and looked at the called ID.

"Naruto? What the hell does he want," she sounded annoyed. Lizzi flipped open her phone.

"Yo, what's up? ...Right now? ...Oh, well, we're at McDonalds. ...I don't know, will he be okay with that? ...Oh, well, okay. ...I don't know, Naruto! Don't ask me that! ...Alright, I'll ask her!"

Lizzi turned to Kari, who was busying herself by playing with the paper crane. She would have been listening in on the conversation, but at the moment, Kari had a short attention span. "Shikamaru wants Naruto to ask me to ask you if you would say yes if he asked you out," Lizzi spat out in one quick breath. Kari just gave her a blank stare and a dumb look. Naruto yelled at her through the phone.

"Oh, Shikamaru didn't want to know? You were just _curious_? ...What the hell, baka! Why didn't you ask her yourself? ...Urusei! I'll see you in a few minutes. Ja."

Lizzi hung up her phone and looked at Kari, who was still dumbfounded. "Nevermind. We're meeting Naruto, Shikamaru, Chouji, and Lee at the park. Let's go." The two said goodbye to their senior friends and headed towards the park.

"Lizzi-chan, I don't know if I can do this..." Kari said with unease.

Lizzi rolled her eyes, "I don't see what the big deal is. All you did was kiss! I've kissed a lot of boys that I'm still friends with."

Kari went wide eyed. This was shocking news to her. "Like who!?" she asked persistantly.

"Naruto..." Lizzi blushed. Kari let out a noise that was somewhere along the lines of a gasp, squeal, and a laugh. "When did _this _happen? And why am I just learning of it now?"

"It was over the spring break when you were in New York. Sakura held a beginning of high school party type thing... But yeah, she invited everyone. Seriously, **everyone **in our year," Lizzi explained. She then added in a trailing off mumble, "That was also where I hooked up with Kiba..."

In a playful manner, Kari gave her friend a slight push and gaped at her. "You turned into a little skank while I was gone, ne? And that explains why Kiba's so much more cocky around now. I don't even wanna know what drove you to even touch that... thing," Kari shuddered, "But anyway, I bet this means that you and Gaara are no longer **chaste**." Kari couldn't help but laugh, as Lizzi couldn't help but blush. She looked around nervously and scratched her head. Kari looked at her in aghast.

"KOZUKI LIZZI! Fo' realz!?" she exclaimed. Numerous pedestrians walking by looked at her. Kari realized that she had used some American slang, so she probably seemed quite strange.

Shaking off what she had said, Kari's attention went back to her best friend. "Well?" she pressed on, "C'mon, Lizzi-chan, I'm your best friend! You can tell me anything and I won't judge you." She stuck out her pinky finger, "Promise."

Lizzi let out a small laugh and wrapped her pinky finger around Kari's. "Okay, but it's not what you think! It's just... you know," she very vaguely explained. Kari understood nonetheless. Before the conversation could go on any further, Lizzi's phone went off.

"Oh, speaking of my Gaara-kun, he wants to meet up with me," Lizzi informed after looking at her cell phone.

"Sure, invite him. Just hope that Naruto isn't... well, Naruto to him," Kari said simply.

Lizzi shook her head. "No, he wants to meet up with _me_. **Alone**," she stressed. Lizzi replied to Gaara quickly. Shutting her phone, she glanced at Kari with a grin planted on her face.

"Lizzi-chan, don't you dare ditch me!" Kari said through clenched teeth.

As she slowly backed away, Lizzi let out a fake cough. "I think I might be catching a cold!" she said in disbelief.

"You can't leave me after what I just said about Shikamaru!" Kari practically yelled as Lizzi kept getting further away from her.

Lizzi coughed again. "Be strong!" she said in a mock hoarse voice. Suddenly, her voice changed into a very sweet tone, "Sayonara!" Turning on her heel, Lizzi quickly rushed off in the opposite direction of the park.

"Lizzi-chan!" Kari called but the only reply that she recieved was a small wave. Accepting her defeat, Kari sighed and headed towards the park for her demise.

_Okay, just stay calm. Besides, it's not like you're going to be alone with him!_

The sky was becoming dark and cloudy. It looked as if to predict rain. The temperature had dropped a few degerees since after school. It didn't feel like spring anymore.

_Just relax. You can talk to Naruto! Just Naruto, don't bother with anyone else._ Kari nodded to herself in agreement to her plan. She finally felt calm and prepared.

When she reached the park, Kari was welcomed by only one, solitary person. He stood next to the slide and held a cigarrette in his hand. Seeing Kari, he took the last drag of it and exhaled in a sigh. Slowly, rain started falling from the sky. The boy flicked his cigarrette on the ground. He walked towards Kari, stepping on it as he went. He approached Kari and placed one hand on her shoulder, the other cupping her cheek.

"Watashi-" Kari began, but he stopped her with a kiss.

She started to kiss back, but then realized what she was doing. Kari stopped and stepped away from him "Sasuke! I'm sorry, but I don't like you!"

Sasuke ignored her refusal and forced another kiss onto her lips. Kari was very passive towards Sasuke's aggressive tongue entering her mouth. She found the taste of him awful. The ash flavor horrified her, yet Kari couldn't make herself back away from it's owner. Sasuke pushed Kari up against the back of the slide and started moving his hand up her shirt. She went to stop his hand, but her body froze when she opened her eyes to see the people whom she originally came here for.

Eyes set upon a rather angry and annoyed group of boys, Kari pushed Sasuke off of her and took a step toawrds her friends. Shikamaru looked at the ground and shook his head.

"Troublesome" was all he said before briskly walking away.

Everyone stood in silence. The only noise that could be heard was the tapping of the rain as it grew heavier and heavier.

_Go after him! This isn't some typical drama show! If you want him, then go get him!_

Kari now understood why in movies and shows the character who was just in a fight with their love interest wouldn't follow them afterward. It was simple, really. They were scared. They were afraid of making things worse, amoung plenty of other things. But, Kari didn't let her fear get in her way of chasing after what she wanted; who she really wanted. She didn't care about the popular and rich pretty boy, Hyuuga Neji, whom she had always crushed on. She didn't care about the emo, yet extremely attractive, Uchiha Sasuke, who she could never say no to and could have at the press of a button. All she wanted was to be with the one boy who had been by her side since she had arrived in Japan. The boy who she could be serious and careless with. The boy who actually had manners and was polite to her even though they we completely unformal.

Kari wanted Shikamaru.

She ran past an angry Naruto and an utterly confused Chouji and Lee. After she was out of sight, Naruto turned to Sasuke. The cocky raven-haired boy stood next to the slide with a smirk across his face. It was as if he thought he had somehow finally won Kari over.

Naruto gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists. "Sasuke!" Naruto shouted and lunged towards Sasuke with a punch. Impact was made and fight broke out amoungst the boys in the park.

"Shikamaru!" Kari called, "Shikamaru!" She had finally caught up to him, but only because he stopped moving. Shikamaru turned around to look at the distraught Kari. She honestly looked worse because of the rain. He, however, found her to look as beautiful as ever.

"Shikamaru..." Kari spoke very quietly.

"Kari, how could you?" he asked fiercely.

Kari felt ashamed and embarrassed for what she had done. "I didn't mean for that to happen, you have to believe me! He just sort of... forced himself on me. The last thing I want to do is hurt you, Shikamaru." Her words were sincere, especially the final sentence.

Shikamaru let out something like a scoff. "You couldn't have pushed him away, could you? I'm not an idiot, Kari. You should've just told me that you didn't like me..." his voice got lower as he talked.

Kari gave him a nasty look. "You know, maybe I did want to kiss him! I am single, after all! It's not like you asked me out, so it's not like I have to save myself for you. I can kiss any boy I want to!" Kari argued in a very haughty tone. Shikamaru was shocked and hurt. He didn't say anymore before he left, leaving Kari alone in the rain.

Kari started walking. Not in any particular direction, she just walked. She walked and thought. She thought about Shikamaru. She thought about Sasuke. She thought about Naruto, and that was when it hit her.

_He must be pissed._

She let out a sigh and looked up only to realize that she didn't know where she was.

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**That sucks.**


	7. This Was Never the Way I Planned

**Ah, lovely. I'm being more productive! Aren't you excited? I'm excited. It's about 4:30am right now, and I've only been up for a little more than 12 hours. Yeah, vacation really does that to me, you know? Well, this is a VERY interesting chapter. Hehe ;3 -Ahem- No sex, though, so don't think that! Anyways! **

**As always: Enjoy~  
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Kari knew that she was definitely still in Konoha, but nowhere near her house. She figured she was in the Northern area; she lived on the south side. The only time she was ever around here was when she went over Sakura's house. Kari would go there, but unfortunately, she didn't know where Sakura lived, seeing how she had only been to her house a few times... Three at the most.

A car suddenly pulled up next to Kari. She was frightened at first, but was relieved after she saw who was inside.

"Kari-chan! What are you doing outside in the rain! It's freezing! Get in!" Yumi cried after she opened her passenger side door. Kari gladly accepted Yumi's offer and sat inside the car.

"Arigatou, Yumi-chan," she thanked.

"No problem!" Yumi smiled. She put the car back in motion and started driving. "So, why were you walking around in the rain, anyways?" she asked curiously.

Kari explained her situation, beginning with Sasuke and ending with Shikamaru leaving her to get lost.

Yumi made a disgusted noise. "I hate boy drama! But you wanna know the good thing about the messes they make?" Yumi smirked at her younger friend.

Kari looked at her in confusion. "How could there be anything good about boy drama?" she asked in a tone as if to say Yumi was crazy.

Yumi laughed, "A girl night, baka!" Kari rolled her eyes.

"But wait, it's a school night... How can we have a girl night?" she asked.

"Well, you can sleepover my house; do you think that would be fine? My parents seem to spend less time at home as I get older. Perhaps it's some way to make me more independent..." Yumi's voice trailed off. Noticing what she was doing, she directed back to Kari. "But yeah, just ask! We can stop by your house now, where do you live?"

Kari was in disbelief. She was being offered by the ever so popular third year, Kudo Yumi, to have a sleepover! On a school night, nonetheless. Kari couldn't help but feel popular along with more mature and older. After giving Yumi directions to her house, she also realized something else.

_Sasori better be home._

"You can come up, too. No need to wait in the car," Kari proposed as she exited Yumi's parked car in front of her apartment. Yumi nodded and got out, "Sure!"

The two girls climbed the stairs and entered Kari's home. "Tadaima," Kari called into the house as she removed her shoes. She looked up only to find that Sasori had invited almost all of his friends over. Kari had forgotten that her grandmother was at a doctor's appointment today. Since their mother was at work and Sasori was left alone, he would of course take this opportunity to invite everyone he knew into their cramped apartment. Today, he decided to invite Deidara, Itachi, Kisame, Tobi, and Pain.

"Niibaka!" Kari hollered into the living room. They were all currently crowded around the TV and Play Station 2, so no one really paid any attention. Sasori, who was sitting on the couch at the time, looked over with annoyance. His eyes then set upon Yumi and he almost fainted... while sitting down.

"Neesan, okaerinasai," Sasori stood up and hurried over to his sister and her guest. He looked at Yumi only to quickly look away. "Konnichiwa, Yumi-san."

"Konnichiwa, Sasori-san. Ogenki desuka?" Yumi tried to make simple conversation.

Kari left her anxious brother and friend as she went to use the phone. She called her mother and asked if she could spend the night at a friend's house. After her mother heard that it was Kudo Yumi, she was very pleased and very willingly granted Kari permission. Kari really wasn't surprised that Yumi's reputation spread even to parents.

After putting a few things together in a bag from her room, Kari walked back out to the living room. The boys had sucked Yumi into the exciting gaming world of Mortal Kombat that was her living room. Kari laughed and watched Yumi beat Tobi in a battle.

"Tobi, I thought you were a good boy," Deidara teased his friend.

"Tobi is a good boy! A good boy that isn't good at fighting games," he nodded and waved his finger.

Yumi let out a small laugh at Tobi's gestures. She stood up and as she walked over to Kari, glanced over at Sasori. He gave her a shy and surprised smile while she gave him one of her trademark smiles that were glazed with sweetness.

"You ready, Kari-chan?" Yumi asked as she ran her fingers through her silky, long brown hair. Sasori was still watching her.

Kari noticed her brother and grinned mischievously. Sasori caught sight of this and gave her a death glare. Whatever evil plans Kari had, she quickly forgot. Yumi gave a confused look between the two and cocked an eyebrow at Kari.

"Heh... Yeah, I'm ready!" she scratched her head, nervously. The two headed for the door and exited with a, "Ittekimasu."

After the door closed, all of Sasori's friends looked at him and laughed immaturely. Sasori shot them all a glare.

"You are such a WUSS, man!" Kisame roared with laughter.

"With someone like Kudo, you gotta be confident!" Itachi chimed in, "If you don't hurry and do something, she's going to be taken by someone else."

"Itachi-san is right, yeah. Just ask her out," Deidara agreed. Tobi was the background laughter in the scene.

Sasori furrowed his brow. "What do any of you know? None of you have a girlfriend!" he argued.

Pain casually raised his hand. "Thanks for remembering I was here, Sasori."

"How did you and Konan get together anyway?" Sasori asked.

Pain shrugged, "We've known eachother for a long time... It kind of just happened when we entered high school."

Sasori looked to the side and sighed. "I've been going to the same school as Yumi-san since grade school! But we still act like mere classmates."

Deidara chuckled, "How sincere, Sasori-san."

Tobi, who was playing Final Fantasy X during the other's conversation, finally joined in. He said in a very immature and slightly creepy voice, "Konan-chan is friends with Yumi-chan, ne? Why don't we just have her get you and Yumi-chan together," Tobi winked and made a nudging gesture in Sasori's direction.

"Baka!" Deidara insulted and kicked Tobi.

Pain rolled his eyes. "Deidara, he has actually thought of a good idea. Baka."

Tobi jumped up off the floor. "Tobi IS a good boy!" he beamed. This earned him another kick and trip to the floor from Deidara.

Yumi and Kari entered a small house on the Northern area of Konoha; the Kudo residence.

"This is your house?" Kari asked in a surprised tone as she removed her shoes.

Kari had always figured that someone like Yumi lived in a much bigger house closer to the Hills of Konoha. She expected to find very elegant furniture and a very rich atmosphere. Instead, Kari found herself walking into quite the cozy and simple house, which was actually a two family home. The first floor belonged to Yumi's family and the upstairs to her aunt. There was a simple porch outside the door which had a staircase at the end which led up to the second floor porch and front door. The house consisted of a small kitchen and dining room that were connected by an archway, a simple living room with a couch, loveseat, small and rectangular coffee table, and an entertainment center, one bathroom, and two ordinary bedrooms. Kari was astonished that this was the house where all of Konoha's number one parties happened.

"That's what everyone says," Yumi put a hand up to her mouth and laughed. She put her keys down on a table next to the door and headed directly for the kitchen. She motioned for Kari to follow her. "Do you want anything to drink?" she asked as she opened the fridge.

Kari shook her head, "No thanks." Suddenly, she found herself very uneasy. It was this moment that it hit her: Kari was alone with Kudo Yumi in her house. She was with the most idolized girl she knew inside an empty house. Anyone, absolutely _anyone_ would take her place in an instant. Kari felt very intimidated.

Yumi pulled out a carton of milk and started drinking from it. Kari stood in the entryway, admiring her sempai. Yumi was currently wearing slightly loose jean capris, a black tank top, and an unzipped white sweatshirt. Kari found herself getting these feelings that she had never had for someone of the same sex. She bit her lip as her anxiety rose from gazing at Yumi. What was there about her not to admire? She had long, slender legs. She had a curvy torso with the perfect sized chest for her slim body. Not to mention, her skin had the perfect tan.

"The Perfect 10," was defined as Kudo Yumi.

After putting back the carton of milk, Yumi looked up to see Kari gazing at her. She quietly laughed and smirked.

"Calm down, Kari-chan, there's no need to be so nervous! Everyone always feel inferior to me," Yumi rolled her eyes at this, "But really, you'll see tonight how much of a dork I am." She laughed again and took something out from the freezer. Grabbing two spoons, Yumi led the way to her living room.

She set down a pint of ice cream and the spoons on the coffee table and turned on her TV. "This is a girly night, remember, Kari-chan?" Yumi said as she opened the door of the entertainment center. She looked through the DVDs, trying to find one that was perfect for the occasion.

Kari smiled, feeling a little relieved and more relaxed. "Yeah. We can dish about boys and gossip about everyone we hate!" she joked and plopped down on the couch. Yumi victoriously smiled as she pulled a DVD out from the cabinet.

"Yosh, I got Grease and Mean Girls. Which one?" she turned around and asked Kari in a serious tone.

Kari looked at her strangely. She likes popular American movies? Yumi laughed, "Since you're actually from America, I hope you know these movies! I'll admit right now that I'm obsessed with American pop culture."

This made Kari feel a lot more comfortable. "I think I'm in a Grease mood tonight," she decided. Yumi nodded, "Good choice!" She popped it in the DVD player and sat down next to Kari on the couch.

As the movie began, the two immediately began making comments about how unrealistic and cheesy it was. By the end of the movie, they were actually laughing at it.

"So, I guess this movie is telling teenage girls that if they want a boy to like them, then they have to turn into a smoking hooch?" Kari said between laughs.

"Men do love whores," Yumi added.

Kari took another scoop of the nearly melted and ice cream, but as she went for it, her spoon crossed with Yumi's! The result? A spoon fight, which ended with Yumi as the victor.

"After watching this, Kari-chan, are you going to start dressing like a slut and smoking packs of cigarettes a day to get Shikamaru-kun's attention?" she asked playfully.

Kari stuck her tongue out. "Urusei!" She went quiet after that, for she started thinking about him. Yumi lowered her head and looked up at Kari. "Aw, you really like him, ne?" she had a sympathetic and kind voice. Kari nodded. Yumi grinned. She adjusted herself on the couch and crossed her legs. She stared at Kari until she looked up at her. Kari was utterly confused.

"This is fairly simple, actually," Yumi began, "All you really need to do is apologize to him." Kari nearly fainted and cocked an eyebrow at her friend. Yumi continued, "You didn't do anything wrong when you made out with Sasuke-kun, that's where you were right. It was because Shikamaru-kun didn't ask you out that it was not a foul, and you would normally keep points for that, and he would have less." Kari opened her mouth to say something, but Yumi went on. "But! Since you pointed out to him that he didn't ask you out, you lost major points."

_Since when were we keeping points?_

"What you're saying is... I need to apologize to Shikamaru for yelling at him?" Kari asked cautiously. Due to Yumi's slightly messed up logic, she might be wrong.

"Obviously!" Yumi exclaimed, "Kohai baka." She stuck her tongue out. Kari rolled her eyes.

"Ne, Yumi-chan, who do you like?" Kari turned the tables.

Yumi's facial expression changed as she began thinking. After a moment or two, she spoke. "You can keep a secret, ne, Kari-chan?" she asked. Kari nodded. "Well, the truth is... I'm not really even sure of my sexuality!" Yumi laughed nervously and scratched the back of her head.

Blankly, Kari stared at her. "So what does that mean... you don't like anyone? You like someone that's a girl? You like many people? You're not sure who you like?" her voice trailed on with questions.

Yumi shook her hands in front of her. "No, no. Well, it was one of the things you said... I think..." She thought for a moment. "But anyways! You see, I like your brother..."

Kari couldn't help but laugh a little at this. "Ah, I see. So you aren't sure whether niisan is a boy or a girl?" The opportunity to make fun of Sasori was handed to her.

Yumi rolled her eyes. Kari tried to become serious again. "This means... that you're going to go out with Sasori and see if it feels right?" Frankly, Kari wasn't sure what she was talking about. Yumi shook her head. "Actually... There's someone else I like. And I'm going to see who I like more."

Yumi grinned and leaned in to Kari. Their lips met for a few long seconds before Yumi retreated. "I'm just going to see which Akasuna sibling I like more," she winked playfully.

If this happened to her with any other girl at any other time, Kari would be sitting dead still. She would be utterly confused, and not to mention uneasy. With Yumi, though, it just felt normal. It didn't seem like a big deal... It actually felt innocent in some way. It felt wrong, though, but at the same time it felt right. The kiss didn't get in the way of the rest of their evening. They didn't act like it didn't happen, though, because it did. It was just simply not a big deal. Perhaps it was because they both liked it?

The kiss wasn't brought up again until they were both lying in Yumi's bed, getting ready to go to sleep at one in the morning.

"Do you think Shikamaru-kun will mind that you once again have kissed someone else," Yumi asked in a very teasing manner. Kari laughed out of annoyance. "Probably..." She stopped herself when something crossed her mind. "Actually, he seems like a pervert. I bet he would want a live viewing."

The two girls broke out into laughter yet again. Yumi rolled over and looked at Kari. She gave her another kiss, this time on the cheek, before getting back into a sleeping position.

"Night, Kari-chan."

"G'night, Yumi-chan."

_Today was never the way I planned for anything to turn out... But somehow, Yumi-chan made it seem okay._

_

* * *

_**OHMAHGAH! What gonna happen nao?? Kari+Yumi=RELATIONSHIP!?! Nuu? Yess? Shikamaru really mad at Kari? Kari go insane!? Tobi finally beats someone in Mortal Kombat!??! **

**Find out on the next episode of Dragon Ball Z!**

**I mean... The next chapter of "The Angst of Konoha High."**

**(May I remind you that I've been up all night? _)  
**


	8. You Want Drama? Then Look No Further

**SHORT CHAPTER! Sorry :[ It's exciting, though! I promise! And also, I will probably be posting more often now. But, you know, I've said crazy stuff like this before... x| Oh! And before I forget: Thank you to DelinquentDuo for always posting reviews :] They keep me motivated!! They really do! So, all my other readers should learn from them, tehe :3 In reply to your more recent review, I'm sorry to inform you that we won't see Sasori's reaction for a few chapters... Gomen! ^^**

**Anyways, on with the short chapter... Enjoy!  
**

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The next morning, Yumi and Kari drove to school and separated once they entered the cafeteria. Despite the wonderful time they had together the night before, the two were still a part of different cliques, let alone on opposite sides of the high school years.

Kari walked over to her usual group of friends. It was about 8:10, so the only ones there so far were Lizzi and Yui. Hinata, who is also one of the first to come, was more than likely attending to her class representative duties. Everyone else came within the next five to ten minutes. Lizzi was staring off into space while Yui was, of course, reading a graphic novel. As she greeted Lizzi, Kari realized that her best friend didn't have a clue to what had happened yesterday. Not at all. At least, that's what she believed.

"Lizzi, I have so much to tell you!" Kari exasperated as she plopped down in a chair next to her. Lizzi gave her a very disappointed look, giving Kari the hint that she had already found out.

"Shikamaru vented everything to me last night. Tell me, Kari-chan; why?" she asked with a concerned tone.

Kari sighed, "Shikamaru only told you his side, didn't he? I guess he didn't listen to me when I tried to explain…" Kari frowned and stared at her feet. She wondered how everything could've gone from so good at the festival, to confusing yesterday, then to horrible, then back to good at Yumi's, and now, once again, she felt horrible. Yesterday was just so hectic, but last night was so fun. Now, she wished that she had a place she could just hide away in.

Lizzi glared at her. "Kari, you know that you could've resisted Sasuke if you really wanted to. Admit it, you can't decide who the hell you like!" she was almost yelling. At this point, Naruto and Lee had entered the school and noticed the scene. Lizzi stood up out of excitement and continued, "You know that Sasuke likes you, and you know that Shikamaru likes you. Just pick one! Stop playing these stupid games, Kari-chan! You're hurting him… Don't be so selfish!" As Lizzi's voice rose, so did the amount of heads that were turning. The boys didn't say anything once they reached the girls. Naruto seemed to be agreeing with what Lizzi was saying, while Lee felt more worried about Kari.

A feeling of betrayal ran through Kari's body as she listened to Lizzi speak. "You haven't even talked to me about this, Lizzi-chan! Maybe you should've talked to me when Shikamaru went crying to you." As if on cue, Shikamaru and Chouji had begun to walk towards the dramatic group.

Lizzi retorted back, "It isn't hard to see how much of a whore you're being. After what I heard from Shikamaru, I thought that it was pretty clear to see."

Kari stood up and tried to defend herself. "How can you accuse me of all of this when you weren't even there? Do you remember that? How you ditched me, after I told you how awkward it was going to be for me, to go give head to your fucking boyfriend! And you're calling me a whore."

The two girls were standing a mere few inches away from eachother. The intensity from the two of them could be felt across the cafeteria.

"At least I'm not going between boys and confusing them! How many hearts have you broken this past week, huh?" Lizzi had finished her argument.

Kari couldn't take it. "Some best fucking friend you are," she said through gritted teeth and a dry throat before she whisked herself away out of the cafeteria. The first bell rang as she walked off.

Yui looked up from the book she was reading and watched Kari run into a nearby bathroom. She then watched what the others were doing. Shikamaru seemed somewhere between awkward and upset. Chouji, worried about his best friend, was looking at him and was trying to see any signs. Naruto had a smug look on his face and acted as if he didn't care about Kari running off. Lee was the only one to show any sympathy. So, after a brief moment of whispers and murmurs from other students leaving to go to class, he spoke up.

"Lizzi-san, I think you were a little harsh-"

Lizzi turned to him and glared at him with fierce eyes. "A little harsh!? You don't think that what she said was uncalled for? I never thought you were one to pick sides, Lee."

Lee now regretted saying anything. He should know better than to try to convince a pissed of girl that she was wrong. Lee picked up his bag and walked off to class.

"Lizzi-chan, don't worry about it. Kari is being a huge bitch," Naruto grinned. Lizzi gave him the death glare, too, but now she had tears in her eyes. He was confused.

"Naruto, you don't fucking understand anything!" she cried and ran out of the cafeteria, and out of the school. A few people looked at her with confused faces as she ran past them out the school doors. Naruto had to register what had just happened before calling after her and running towards the doors.

Yui then looked over at Shikamaru to see his reaction.

"Shikamaru, are you gonna be alright?" Chouji asked him. He looked at him lazily. "Troublesome, dramatic girls," was all he said before walking slowly towards the way to his homeroom. Chouji looked at Yui. She shrugged, and then pointed at Shikamaru. Chouji nodded to her and followed his friend.

Yui sighed and then looked at the girl's bathroom door. She pondered for a moment, then closed her book and walked towards the bathroom.

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**Drama, Drama, Drama. But hey, that's what high school's all about, ne? xD Let's see how this all unfolds!!!**


	9. And I Will Keep You Company

**Once again, I present to you... A SHORT CHAPTER! Yay! -sarcasm- I know, my bad. This one is even shorter than the one before it. It was originally going to the same chapter, but it seemed more suspenseful to cut them in half x.x I should write dramatic Soap Opera scripts, hahah.**

**Also, I am going to start posting the title-credit now. I've been meaning to, but I just keep forgetting! ahh, woops. If you haven't noticed, all of the chapter titles are either song lyrics or song titles... or both! To make up for my past 8 chapters of not giving title credit (too lazy to fix it all, you know?) Imma post it all here.**

**Chapter 1: "It's An Adventure, Right?" - Hirano Aya's "Bouken Desho Desho?"  
Chapter 2: "You Wanna Hold My Hand" - The Beatle's "I Want To Hold Your Hand"  
Chapter 3: "You Always Get Hit Out Of Nowhere" - Brand New's "Play Crack The Sky"  
Chapter 4: "The Best Damn Thing" - Avril Lavigne's "The Best Damn Thing"  
Chapter 5: "Bring It! Sailor Fuku?" - Aya Hirano, Emiri Kato, Kaori Fukuhara, and Aya Endo's "Motteke! Sailor Fuku!"  
Chapter 6: "Boys Don't Cry" - The Cure's "Boys Don't Cry"  
Chapter 7: "This Was Never The Way I Planned" - Katy Perry's "I Kissed A Girl"  
Chapter 8: "You Want Drama? Look No Further" - Relient K's "Mood Rings"**

**Now, I present to you Chapter 9!  
"And I Will Keep You Company" - Bright Eyes' "Bowl of Oranges"**

**Enjoi~**

* * *

"Naruto, I told you, leave me the fuck alone!" Lizzi turned around rapidly to meet eyes with the boy who kept following her off school grounds. It was a cloudy day, so everything looked a little less light, even at 8:30 in the morning.

"Lizzi-chan, why won't you talk to me? I thought we were best friends!" he asked. Anyone could notice the hurt in his voice when he said the words "best friends."

Lizzi looked sideways and then at the ground. "Naruto, you don't understand. You really don't. I'm just gonna call Gaara. Go back to school," she said in a hoarse voice. As she took out her phone, Naruto cried, "No!"

Closing her phone, Lizzi looked at Naruto. He was biting his lip and staring into her eyes with his watery blue ones.

"Why not?" Lizzi asked cautiously.

"Because…" Naruto began reluctantly, "Because I don't think you should be with him."

"And why do you think that, Naruto?"

"Because I think that you should be with me," he blurted out as the late bell rang across the school grounds.

"Shikamaru, wait up!" Chouji called out to his best friend. Shikamaru started to pick up his pace once Chouji came after him.

"I can't slow down, I'll be late for class," he muttered.

Chouji finally caught up to him. "Yeah, like you care about that," he tried to keep his pace with Shikamaru and continued, "Are you alright, dude?"

Shikamaru looked at him then glanced away. He merely shrugged.

"I know that she hurt you really bad. But, I'm sure Kari would never mean to do something so hurtful to anyone. I mean, yeah, I'm not the closest person to Kari, but I know enough about her to know that she isn't a bad-hearted person. I'm sorry to say it, but I think you have to give her the benefit of the doubt on this one."

Shikamaru was at first furious at his friend, but then, being the genius that he is, figured out that he was right. He knew that there was no point to still be mad at Kari. She kissed him first, so he wins, right? Whatever logic Shikamaru could find, he used. He used it to make himself feel better about Kari, and more importantly, him and Kari.

Chouji suddenly interrupted his thoughts. "When are you gonna ask her out?" he asked bluntly.

These words made Shikamaru shake and come to an abrupt stop. He had never asked anyone out before. Sure, he dated Ino in junior high, but she kind of forced him into it. The feelings that Shikamaru had towards Kari were legitimate. How was he going to pull it off?

Then, Shikamaru had realized how much of a jerk he was being when he could actually be being a wonderful person to Kari. He quickly turned around and ran towards the direction of the cafeteria bathrooms.

"Uh, Shikamaru?" Chouji, being very confused, asked as the late bell rang.

"Kari?" Yui called into the bathroom as she slowly opened the door. Standing in front of the mirror and sink, Kari was wiping her wet eyes and tried to fix her makeup. When she heard her name, Kari turned around and looked at Yui. The small girl was just standing there, gazing at Kari with a hopeful look.

"Yui…" Kari spoke the one syllable. She was shocked that Yui would actually care enough to follow her into the bathroom to make sure that she was alright.

Yui took a few steps forward. "I know you're really upset right now, Kari-chan, but you need to forget about it." She walked over to the sink next to an even more confused Kari and continued, "Lizzi should not have called you out like that; She had no right to. But, the two of you are best friends, so I'm sure everything will work out for the two of you."

Kari nodded. She felt a little better about what happened with Lizzi now—even the best of friends have their immature fights—but Shikamaru was still on her mind. "What about-"

"Shikamaru?" Yui finished.

Kari half-frowned, "Yeah."

Yui sighed and then thought for a moment. She bit her lip in thought, then released it and spoke. "All I can say, Kari-chan, is to be optimistic." Yui gave her a huge smile and a thumbs up. Kari couldn't help but laugh a little bit. The late bell rang throughout the school.

"Arigatou, Yui-chan," Kari said.

"No problem," Yui gave her a slight nod then walked outside the bathroom.

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**Lalalaa~ I don't have much to say here. I'll try to get the next one out asap! Maybe by tomorrow? You know me, though, so there's no guarentee.** **Please Review!**


	10. I Do Appreciate You Being Around

**Okay, this one's a bit longer than my previous chapters, but probably not as intense! I think you may be pleased with some semi-cute scenes, however. Thank you to h00djr for the reviews! And I know, I suck so much for not combining chapters 8&9! I don't know why I wanted to split them so badly, but I just feel like I had to. I think it's because I'm really mean xD And also, it's funny when people are like 'zomg! i needa knowww what happennsszzz!!" -ahem-  
**

**Title Credit- The Beatle's "Help"**

**Enjoy~**

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Kari didn't really care too much about being late. As some may guess, she's not the biggest school-conscious person out there. The only thing she cared about was keeping her grades moderately good so that she could play tennis and soccer.

As she put her attention back to fixing herself in the mirror, there was a knock at the door.

Kari opened her mouth as to say, "Come in," or "Be right out," but then quickly shut it. She had to do a double take on the situation.

_Who would be knocking at a public girl's bathroom? Seriously, out of all things to do, what girl would knock on the door? _

Kari laughed a bit and heard the knock again. It was followed by a voice this time. "Kari, if you're not in there, then I'm gonna feel like the biggest baka," the male voice muttered.

"Shikamaru?" Kari called. Her glazed eyes were wide and her nerves started going haywire. Shikamaru cracked the door opened just enough to see Kari.

"Kari," he couldn't bring himself to say anything else. After grabbing her makeup off the sink and shoving it into her bag, Kari walked over to the door and slipped outside it.

Shikamaru seemed disappointed that Kari was done crying. He risked getting in trouble for being late, plus roaming around the halls without a pass, (and let alone, he even opened the door to the girls bathroom) just to comfort her.

"Listen," They both began. The two looked at eachother, blushed, and laughed.

Kari awkwardly scratched the back of her head. "Let's just both say; Apology accepted?" she suggested with a nervous smile.

Shikamaru nodded, "Yeah. That sounds good. It looks like we both messed up, ne?" He smirked down at her, and she nodded with a smile.

"Are things with you and Lizzi gonna be okay?" Shikamaru asked.

Kari rolled her eyes. "Obviously, but we still need to talk. I guess we just don't understand eachother all that well right now," she let out a defeated sigh.

Shikamaru nudged her. "Don't worry about it."

"Nara Shikamaru! Akasuna Kari!" someone hollered down the hallway. The teenagers quickly looked up to see none other than their principal.

The fiery, blonde-headed, and busy woman; Tsunade—or, to Naruto, Tsunade-baachan—was standing right down the hall from them. Her eyes were locked onto them like targets. Kari turned to Shikamaru, who had turned to her. They both weren't too sure of what to do, so Kari thought of something quickly.

"Oh, Tsunade-sama! We were just heading to class," she smiled and bowed, "Just a little late, I know. Gomen nasai."

Shikamaru copied Kari's actions. "Hai, we're on our way to class now."

Tsunade furrowed her brow, "Well, you better get there quicker. Now!"

"Hai! Tsunade-sama!" they spoke in unison and began to speed walk randomly down the hallway.

When they were halfway to Kari's homeroom, Shikamaru stopped in his steps.

"Eh?" Kari tilted her head in confusion at Shikamaru.

"My class is in the other direction," he mumbled, "Troublesome…"

Kari giggled, "Well, you better hurry then! Bai-bai, Shikamaru-sama! See you next period!" She waved brightly and ran into her classroom. Shikamaru sighed and rolled his eyes.

"I didn't even get to ask her out…" he thought aloud.

Kari walked into her homeroom and scanned over the room. Lizzi, nor Naruto, were in class, which was strange, because they were both in school earlier. Of course, Kari knew this very well.

"Ah, Akasuna-kun, you decided to show up to class," Kakashi said to Kari.

"Oh yeah!" Kari had almost forgotten that she was late, "Gomen nasai."

Kakashi shrugged and gestured for Kari to take a seat. "I won't mark you tardy this time, but just don't let it happen again," he said indifferently.

Kari took a seat next to Sakura, seeing how she obviously wasn't going to sit next to Sasuke, and it would be weird to sit next to any random person that she didn't know. As she sat down, Sakura quickly turned to her and smiled. There was about five minutes left in homeroom, so whatever gossip Sakura wanted to talk about, she would have to talk fast.

Sakura spat out the first thing on her mind. "What the hell were you and Kozuki arguing about earlier?"

"Well," Kari began reluctantly, "It's kind of a long story." She glanced up at the clock and thought about how she didn't want to tell **everything** to one of the biggest gossips in the school.

"Just tell me in short then!" Sakura suggested. It could noticeably be seen that she was too anxious for some good gossip. Perhaps the school has been dry the past couple of days?

Kari sighed and chose what she was going to say carefully. "You know how Shikamaru and I kissed at the Sakura Festival, right?" Sakura nodded. Kari lowered her voice, "Well, Sasuke had kind of 'forced himself' on me yesterday at the park."

Sakura gasped and looked over at Sasuke across the room, "No!" Kari nodded.

"Yup. And Shikamaru saw it, and then he left and Naruto got into a fight with Sasuke and then I ran after Shikamaru and he wouldn't listen to me and I guess Lizzi took his side," Kari finished quickly.

"Really?" Sakura couldn't believe that her beloved Sasuke would do something like that, "I don't believe it! Did you, you know, give in at all?"

Kari bit her lip. "A little," she admitted, "But I've always had an attraction to him... I don't like him, though!" Kari added the last part as she saw Sakura's facial expression change.

Sakura smiled, "Oh, well, I'm sure you and Lizzi will make up! You guys are best friends, ne?" Sakura was hopeful.

"Yeah," Kari agreed.

Sakura looked from Gaara and back to Kari. She lowered her voice and began talking again, "Now, tell me about what you said to Lizzi. Didn't you say that she ditched you to…" Sakura was cut off by the bell. Kari couldn't have been more relieved.

Kari acted like she didn't hear Sakura as she quickly walked out of homeroom and to her next class. Geometry was awaiting her, after all, with all its "youth" and such.

"-And with the powerful instincts of youth, you will all be able to figure out the measurements of these angles!" Maito Gai lectured the class.

"Gai-sensei, you're so right!" Kari exclaimed after his speech with tears in her eyes. Gai looked at her with suspense. She grabbed her paper and held it up in the air. "The measurements are 30, 60, and 90 degrees!"

Gai clapped his hands and praised his pupil. "Akasuna-kun, your youth has prevailed!"

The class was filled with yawning kids who were already annoyed with their math teacher's curious ways. Kari, however, was now in a better mood since things with Shikamaru cleared up, so she decided to make the best out of her sensei's shenanigans.

"Kari, can't you calm down? You're embarrassing yourself…" Shikamaru whispered to her, "I even feel a little embarrassed for you." Kari merely stuck her tongue out at him and sat back down. Shikamaru rolled his eyes and resisted his head on his desk.

"Shikamaru-sama! Don't sleep in Gai-sensei's exciting and youthful class!" Kari shook Shikamaru's shoulders. He let out an annoyed sigh and glanced over at her to see Kari wearing a mildly stupid grin. Even though Shikamaru wasn't going to admit it, her crazy antics really did amuse him.

Sasuke, however, was glaring at the pair from a few seats away. He continued to send either one of them death glares throughout the entire day. Yesterday at the park, Sasuke was so sure that he had won Kari over. Who could resist one of the "oh-so-attractive" Uchiha boys? Who wouldn't pick him? Especially when being compared to the lazy and boring Nara Shikamaru! Sasuke just couldn't understand Kari's actions at all, and it just made him want her more.

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**I suppose you are all disappointed that Lizzi and Naruto's whereabouts have still not been said. Well, it's stuff like this that drags out a drama, ne? We'll find out the conclusion to that mystery in a couple chapters^^ And I suppose you all are still confused on where Yumi went! And what about Sasori? Is he going to find out about that kiss anytime soon? All very good questions, and the plot will be unravelled in chapters soon to come... In like, a couple weeks? xD I'm such a b*tch!**


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